


Will You

by when_you_know_you_know



Category: Pitch Perfect (Movies)
Genre: F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Family, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-12
Updated: 2018-09-12
Packaged: 2019-07-11 09:55:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 27,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15969935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/when_you_know_you_know/pseuds/when_you_know_you_know
Summary: A Fake Dating AU: Chloe’s invited to her cousin’s wedding and is offered a ‘plus one’ on her invite. Unfortunately there appears to have been a bit of a misunderstanding in the Beale family and as a result Chloe has something rather awkward to ask her best friend..





	1. The Invite

Chloe’s breath hung in her lungs as she stared down at the beautiful card in her hands. A wedding invitation. Her cousin Dana’s no less. Dana who was the same age as Chloe (though three days older). The same colour hair, same bright blue eyes, and around the same height and build too. When they’d been growing up so many had mistaken Dana and Chloe as twins - though they looked just like their respective fathers who actually  _were_  twins, so it was easy to see how the confusion was possible.

But that wasn’t the reason why Chloe was shocked. She was shocked to see that her invitation was addressed to herself and a ‘ _plus 1_ ’. The thing was…Chloe didn’t  _have_  a plus 1 in her life. She had no boyfriend (nor girlfriend) and ever since graduating from college a couple of years back and moving up here to Brooklyn she’d only ever got to a second date with one guy which had ended terribly. The other dates she’d gone on had been utter shambles. So what could she do??

Chloe let out a heavy sigh as she sat on one of the two small wicker chairs in the tiny kitchen of the small studio apartment she shared with her two friends and brought her hand to her forehead. She looked down at the invitation. She’d not been to a family wedding since her sister’s in her freshman year of college. She hadn’t been expected to bring a ‘plus 1’ then. Why now?

And what an assumption for Dana to make! That Chloe would so obviously have a ‘plus 1’ to bring. Why? Because she was twenty seven??

Okay. That was a fairly good assumption to have.

Chloe bit her bottom lip while she spun the invitation around between her fingers. She couldn’t exactly call her Mom about this. Her Mom spent far too many days in the  _year_  texting her youngest daughter to find out if she was dating anyone yet. And each time Chloe had to reply that she wasn’t whilst also trying to hide the fact that it killed her each time her mother asked her.

Because Chloe had absolutely no idea  _why_  she wasn’t dating anyone yet. She was twenty seven for crying out loud. She was young and beautiful and confident - but not  _too_  confident - and she was kind and happy and…a total catch! But for some reason, people just ran after the first date. So Chloe was doomed to forever be alone - living in an apartment with her two best friends: one of which was a loud inappropriate Australian who she’d grown fond of in recent years and mostly tolerated, and the other was a young woman who she’d been secretly in love with for years.. What a mess her life was.

Suddenly her phone chimed and the redhead saw the WhatsApp group she shared with her three older sisters blow up:

## ❤ Un-BEALE-ievable ❤

 **CALLIE** : Call me crazy, but is Dana going a bit OTT with these invites?

 **CLARA** : Tell me about it!

 **CATE** : Sheesh they put yours to shame Cal ❤

 **CALLIE** : I know! I was half expecting a butterfly to escape a’la the movie Bridesmaids ❤

Chloe took a deep breath. Her sisters were all married. Catherine ‘Cate’ McCallister (neé Beale) was the eldest of the bunch and boasted two beautiful daughters of her own - Saskia and Marlowe. And twins Callie and Clara were  _both_  pregnant, due a month apart. Leaving the baby of the Beale sisters, Chloe, left. With no partner, no impending marriage, no children, and as it stood very little job prospects. Chloe Beale - baby of the family and the biggest disappointment (even though her parents and sisters insisted she wasn’t).

 **CHLOE** : Well at least you don’t have to freak out about the ‘and plus 1’ written on your invites.........

 **CLARA** : SHE DIDN’T!!

 **CHLOE** : She did…

 **CALLIE** : God, you don’t think she took Dad’s joke seriously do you?

Chloe’s stomach sank. Bill Beale was the biggest joker. Anything he said always had to be taken with the most pinchiest of pinches of salt. Anyone who knew him best - which was actually only his wife and four daughters - knew when he was being serious. Everyone else was screwed.

 **CHLOE** : Oh God :O what did he say??

 **CLARA** : Nothing to worry about Coco

 **CALLIE** : (she lied..)

 **CATE** : Everyone was at Grandma’s 80th and Dad  _joked_  that you and Beca were dating.

Chloe’s stomach dropped and she stared at her eldest sister’s last message. He’d said  _what_??

 **CHLOE** : What??

 **CALLIE** : He was OBVIOUSLY joking Coco!

 **CLARA** : Totally!

 **CHLOE** : Then WHY does my invite have ‘plus 1’ on it??? :O

 **CATE** : Ok. Coco, you HAVE to calm down. It’s no big deal. Dad said it. A bunch of the family believed him. But it doesn’t mean you have to prove anything ❤

Chloe felt the colour drain from her face, her heart raced as she looked up at the small fold-out bed that she had to share with Beca. She wasn’t sure why her father had said it. But he had. And from the sounds of things her whole family now thought that she and Beca were  _dating_.

 **CHLOE** : Oh God. But I’m gonna look like a total loser if I don’t turn up to this wedding with Beca now!

 **CLARA** : So bring Beca with you then..

 **CALLIE** : Not the worst idea. At least you won’t have to go through the whole ‘sympathy because you just broke up with your girlfriend’ thing.

 **CLARA** : Yeah that’d be worse than going to the wedding with Beca as your fake girlfriend.

 **CATE** : At least you and Beca know each other well enough to pass as girlfriends?

 **CALLIE** : And it’s only for one day?

 **CLARA** : And you guys will have us to turn to when it’s all getting a bit overwhelming because at least we all know that you guys aren’t really dating ;)

 **CHLOE** : So you’re saying I should lie?

Yes. Yes that was exactly what they were saying. And Chloe was petrified.

It wasn’t the idea of going to a family wedding and pretending that she and Beca were in a relationship with one another - after all, it’d be good to show the family that she was doing just as well as Dana was. No, it was the idea of having to suggest it to Beca in the first place. If she knew her best friend as well as she thought she did, then Beca would immediately step away from the notion of having to escort her to a wedding as her ‘plus 1’. Beca hated weddings and social situations that potentially thrusted her into the limelight. Turning up as the new girlfriend of the beloved youngest daughter of Bill Beale? That right there would definitely be the biggest limelight of Beca’s life yet. And Chloe wasn’t sure if she’d agree to it…


	2. The Confusion

Beca slipped into the studio apartment around 8pm, letting out a huge sigh of relief that she was finally home. Work had been a total bitch today and she wasn’t sure how much longer she could stand working somewhere that forced her to pander to some prissy little dick of a music artist - being a music producer was far from what she’d always dreamt it to be be when she was growing up.

The smell of Chloe’s homemade lasagne wafted into her nostrils and her stomach grumbled slightly in delight. Thank  _God_  it was lasagne night tonight - her favourite meal. As she closed the door behind her she noticed her best friend had also been hard at work cleaning the tiny apartment they shared. It looked different. It looked nice.

“Hey.” Beca said while she plonked her satchel down on Chloe’s side of the bed, “Ugh another shit day at work today.” she grumbled, her eyes catching sight of a ridiculously glittery piece of card on a different part of Chloe’s side of the bed. She plucked it from the covers to inspect it curiously.

“Oh no!” Came Chloe’s response, while she pulled the lasagne from the fridge, “What happened to make it so shit?”

But Beca didn’t answer, she was too busy frowning down at the invitation between her fingers. God it was ghastly. So much glitter.  _Too_ _much_  glitter.

“Why do people always insist on putting glitter on everything??” Beca muttered in an unimpressed tone, placing the invitation back down on the bedcovers and grimacing at the amount of glitter on her fingers.

“Oh…you saw that, huh?”

Beca strode the few paces it took to reach the tiny sink near the kitchen and next to the toilet, and began washing her hands with soap to try to remove the stubborn shiny silver spots.

“God Chloe, I think  _astronauts in space_  saw it and confused it for a new cluster of stars it’s so bright and glittery!” Beca said, scrubbing her fingers hard. She didn’t notice how her roommate had placed the lasagne down on the table and was looking over at her nervously.

“It’s a wedding invitation.”

“Yeah I gathered that much once I’d got over the glitter situation.” Beca grumbled while she turned the water off and dried her hands on the nearest towel to her. She wasn’t angry, she was just tired. And she knew Chloe knew that. That was the nice thing about coming home to her best friend - she didn’t have to pretend to be okay or to be a certain way. She could just be herself with no judgement. It was the best.

“Whose wedding?” Beca asked conversationally as she took a seat at the small dinner table, watching while Chloe served a large slice of lasagne onto her plate.

“My cousin’s. Dana?”

Beca reached for the salad and tipped some of it onto her plate beside her lasagne, “The one that looks like you?”

Beca had once seen a photo on Facebook of Dana and Chloe together when they were kids and had genuinely asked her best friend if she had a twin she’d failed to mention. Chloe had laughed hard, saying it was her cousin.

“Yeah.” Chloe said, placing a couple of cool beers by their plates then taking a seat opposite Beca, their knees clattering as usual because the table was so small.

“You should enjoy that..” Beca said with a nod, “You always enjoy family events, right?”

She pulled her focus down to the lasagne, sticking her fork between two layers to slide out some of the creamy cheese layer that Chloe always made herself - Beca’s favourite part. The brunette was so tired she didn’t notice how nervous Chloe was. Not that she was overly great at picking up signals anyway.

“Usually I do but…something’s come up and…well it looks like there’s been some confusion in my family and I’m a little stuck about what to do.”

Beca hung the fork in her mouth and looked up at her best friend. She hated it when Chloe felt stuck or vulnerable about something. Chloe who was normally so strong and very clear about what she wanted.

“What’s going on?” Beca asked tentatively. She loved Chloe, really she did - the woman was her closest friend. But she hated it when Chloe cried because she didn’t know what to do. So that was why Beca was a little reluctant to ask Chloe what was wrong.

She watched as the redhead chewed her bottom lip, looking at her nervously and Beca felt herself getting nervous too. Oh God, what had happened?

“My family seem to think that you and I are dating.”

Beca’s mouth hung open in shock. What gave them  _that_  idea?? Sure, they shared a bed, but that was because they  _had_  to. They couldn’t afford anything bigger and Fat Amy had shotgunned the double bed before either Beca or Chloe could. And Amy was such a sprawler there was no way either of them could share with her. So they’d settled for sharing with each other. And sure, Beca often shared photos of Chloe just as Chloe did of Beca, but that was because they did so much together! It was natural! Not because they were  _dating_!


	3. The Question

“So…hang on what’s happening here?”

Chloe sucked in a deep intake of breath to try to calm her nerves while Beca furrowed her brow at her from across the table. This was risky. Beca was often pretty flighty, and having to just come right out and ask Beca if she’d mind being her ‘plus 1’ at this big Beale family wedding was terrifying. The last thing she wanted was to alienate her best friend - particularly as this whole wedding situation was exactly what she’d dreamt of taking Beca to, back when they were in college. Chloe still had that crush on Beca, though it was a  _maturer_  crush now. She understood that in reality there was no way Beca could ever feel the same way in return.

“Apparently my Dad  _joked_  several weeks ago that you and I are dating and…well, my family believed him.”

“I thought your Mom and sister’s  _never_  believed him?”

Chloe brought a hand out to grab Beca’s which was on the table, “Oh they don’t!” then realised what she’d done and quickly pulled her hand away, “No they, um…it’s just…the  _rest_  of my family that think that.”

“Well did you tell them it isn’t true?” Beca asked, picking at her lasagne. Chloe was beginning to panic though. Oh God, she  _hadn’t_.

“Not exactly.” the redhead answered in a quiet voice, causing Beca to furrow her brow again. There was a pause while the apartment fell silent and the two best friends looked at one another. Then Beca let out a heavy sigh and dropped her fork onto her plate.

“Okay, what’s racing around in your head right now, Beale?”

Chloe hesitated, having drawn her bottom lip between her teeth to chew nervously, then she let out a light sigh to try to calm her thumping heart.

“Will you come to this wedding as my plus one.  _Please_??” She watched as Beca’s eyes rolled and a tiny groan fell from the back of the brunette’s throat. But Chloe continued:

“The invite says ‘plus 1’ on it and I found out that means you, and my family have always compared me to Dana. If I turn up alone to her wedding then that’d not only upset them but it’d upset me too. Because I already feel like I have so much to live up to and try to prove and-“

“- _Okay_ , I’ll  _do_  it.” Beca groaned, rolling her eyes again and Chloe paused.

“Wh-…You will?”

“Yeah.”

“But…you hate weddings.” Chloe said in a quiet voice, watching as Beca shrugged. She didn’t look  _happy_  about the notion. But she certainly didn’t look unhappy.

“Yeah I do. But you’ve got expectations to meet and I need to get out of the city for a few days.”

A small smile began to spread across Chloe’s face while she watched her best friend explain her reasons for coming to the conclusion she had.

“And it’s not like we’ll have to  _kiss_  or anything.”

“We’ll probably have to hold hands.” Chloe interjected, trying to prewarn the woman before her of everything that might be expected of them once they arrived at the venue. But to her surprise, Beca shrugged.

“I could live with that. It’s only for a day-“

“-Two days.”

“Two days…it’s…” Beca paused to take a swig of her beer. She was looking directly at Chloe but the redhead couldn’t be sure what her best friend was thinking. Was two days too long? Did she need to come up with something else to bribe her to do this?

“…just two days of pretending to be in love. No big deal.” Beca finished casually and a tiny pang of sadness washed over Chloe’s body. A part of her wished Beca would go all in. That perhaps the brunette would fall in love with her during this time away. But who was she kidding? Beca could never feel the same way about Chloe as Chloe did about her.


	4. The Rules

It had been decidedly quiet in the apartment since Beca had agreed to go with Chloe as her ‘plus one’ to her cousin’s wedding. The two best friends sat in silence, finishing their respective plates of food, lost in their own thoughts.

Beca was confused. Not because of the request - no matter how odd it seemed - but because of how she felt about the whole situation. It had never in a million years crossed her mind that she would maybe have to one day pretend to be Chloe’s girlfriend. They were best friends. And Beca just didn’t  _feel_  anything more for Chloe than she would expect to feel towards her best friend.

Chloe was beautiful, yes. And she was one of the few people who was able to make Beca belly-laugh. And she was actually one of the few people Beca trusted entirely. In fact…out of a line up of all the people Beca knew, she probably  _would_  pick Chloe to be her fake girlfriend - if she was forced to do so. Chloe was just such easy company. She was… _perfect_.

“Beca?”

Beca jumped out of her thoughts for a moment and looked up at Chloe who was sat opposite her with an expression on her face which showed she’d probably said something and Beca hadn’t heard. Crap.

“Huh?” Beca managed to force out, hoping that Chloe wouldn’t notice the way she was now blushing.

“I said, did you want to come up with some rules?”

“Rules?”

“For the wedding?” Chloe asked, clearly not sure what else she could’ve meant. Beca cleared her throat. Yeah, rules were a good idea. She wasn’t sure why, but they  _felt_  like they were a good idea.

“Uh, yeah. Um…what were you thinking?”

Beca swallowed loudly and looked at her best friend while Chloe looked down at her plate thoughtfully. This woman was going to be  _her girlfriend_ for two days at some point in the foreseeable future. Her girlfriend. She was somehow going to have to look as though she was romantically involved with her.

“Like…I know you don’t like physical affection but-“

“-I never said I didn’t like it.” Beca quickly interrupted. Sure she hated PDA. She hated people doing it. She hated doing it. It was just unnecessary.

“Oh.” Chloe said in a tone of surprise, quickly looking up at Beca with raised eyebrows, “Sorry I just…you’ve never been very cuddly.”

Beca rolled her eyes, “Well I’m never going to  _instigate_  a cuddle, Chlo. But that doesn’t mean I’m not  _cuddly_.”

“So…you’d be…okay with cuddling me?”

Beca thought about it for a moment. She wasn’t one for cuddles if given the choice, but she wasn’t a monster. She’d totally be down with a cuddle here and there.

“Look, if you need a cuddle when you get home from a long day at work, or in the morning before I get up for work, just  _say,_  dude.” Beca said, placing her cutlery down on her empty plate and sitting back in her chair to take a gulp of beer. But Chloe looked surprised again.

“Oh. I was only talking about while we were away at this wedding but if-“

“-Oh. We can just keep it for then if you wa-“

“-No no.” Chloe said quickly, also placing her cutlery down on her empty plate, “I’m…we can cuddle here too.”

The apartment fell silent again while both women looked at their respective beer bottles in hand. It wasn’t exactly an  _uncomfortable_ silence, but it wasn’t the best. Both wanted to apologise for the misunderstanding. But both also couldn’t see why an apology was necessary.

Beca let out a heavy sigh. Might as well get this over and done with.

“Did you want a cuddle now?”

She watched as Chloe’s bright blue eyes snapped up to look at her and in an instant Beca knew that was a ‘yes’. So she muttered a low, “C’mon.” and stood from the kitchen table to wander over to their shared fold-out bed. She heard the sound of Chloe’s chair scraping back and for some reason a tiny smile graced Beca’s face.

Beca scrambled up onto their bed on her side and watched as Chloe seemed to nervously wander to  _her_  side of the bed. The redhead placed her beer down on her bedside table, and Beca awkwardly opened her arms out. This was how it was done, right? Cuddling? The instigator sat a little higher up in the bed while the other snuggled into their body?

She felt her heart race with nerves while Chloe also scrambled up onto the bed. There was a brief pause as Chloe looked up at Beca, as though checking she was okay with this. Then with a deep breath from both women, Chloe gently settled into Beca’s arms, curling her own arm around Beca’s waist.

Beca swallowed loudly as she brought her arms around Chloe’s body. This was the most intimate the two of them had  _ever_  been together - and they’d been sharing a bed for 18 months.

“H-How’s this?” Beca croaked nervously, and she watched, heard, and felt her best friend let out a sigh.

“Really good.” Chloe replied quietly.

“Are my hands in the right place?” Beca asked, having never really hugged anyone like this before. She didn’t want to seem like she was overthinking it. But deep down she was starting to panic.

“Um..” Chloe said but paused and Beca felt her stomach sink with worry. Fuck. If she couldn’t even cuddle Chloe properly how the hell was she going to manage two days as her fake girlfriend??

“Maybe if you brought your right hand to my left elbow and held it gently?” Chloe suggested, and Beca did as she was told. Well already that felt a little more comfortable. “And with your left hand kinda…I dunno stroke my hair from my face or something?”

Again, Beca did as she was told, focussing on making sure she got as much of Chloe’s hair as possible. A light chuckle fell from the redhead’s mouth and Beca froze.

“Maybe a bit slower, Beca. I’m not a horse that needs grooming.”

“Oh.” Beca croaked out again, and resumed the stroking, this time much slower. And there they laid for a few minutes, Beca finally getting into the rhythm of cuddling Chloe properly for the first time. The brunette was actually beginning to enjoy this whole ‘cuddling’ thing. Why hadn’t she done this before?

“So any rules for this wedding now you know I can at least tolerate cuddles?” Beca asked, breaking the silence in the room, and she was so focussed on ensuring the rhythm of her hand strokes were continuous, she’d completely failed to realise that Chloe was in fact smoothing slow circles around a small patch of skin on Beca’s side.

“Um, well we’ll have to hold hands.”

“Easy.” Beca blurted, having spent most of college having to endure Chloe grabbing her hand to drag her places excitably. That had been over four years. Two days would be nothing. “Next.”

“I’d like to be able to wrap my arm around your waist or shoulders when we’re stood together?”

“Waist I can deal with.” Beca answered simply, “But shoulders will freak me out because I’ll feel like I’m being suffocated.”

“I definitely don’t want you to feel like that.” Chloe replied, and Beca was relieved. That was the thing about Chloe - she’d always been..extra careful with the affection she showed Beca. If it were Aubrey or Flo or Stacie or any of the other Bellas, Chloe would bombard them with huge hugs and high fives. But with Beca she almost..second guessed herself before deciding to do something affectionate towards her. And Beca was always grateful that Chloe did.

“I guess I’ll have to do that in return?” Beca asked in a monotone voice, “Arm around the waist thing?”

“I-If you want?” Chloe said with a shrug and Beca paused for a moment. Yeah it’d look weird if she didn’t.

“Okay, noted. Anything else couples do that we’ll have to do at this wedding?”

“Arm draped over the back of my chair?”

“Simple enough.” Beca agreed. Beca liked to lean, and to be fair if she was sat amongst a bunch of people she’d rather sit as close to Chloe as possible than run the risk of being smushed up against a total stranger.

“Complimenting outfits?”

“Obviously.” Beca agreed again. How was that even a question? They both looked awesome in blue. Chloe in particular.

“Is a kiss too much of a stretch?”

Beca froze, her heart skipping a beat and returning with an almighty thud. They were best friends. Not lovers. Couples didn’t just kiss in public…did they? Well, not  _all_  couples. And the chances were people didn’t even  _want_  to see two people kiss.

“Um. I mean I think it  _might_  be a bit too much yeah.” Beca said in an awkward tone and she didn’t feel Chloe screw her face up at how stupid she felt for suggesting it. “I’ll put one on your cheek from time to time though?”

That’s not too unreasonable to offer, right? Because they  _weren’t_  in a relationship really. Even if Beca kept telling herself it was just acting it’d still feel weird kissing Chloe, whether it was in public or private.

“Okay.” Chloe replied quietly and let out a light sigh. Beca resumed the stroking of Chloe’s hair while they remained on their fold-out bed together.

“So how long until the big day?” Beca asked, mentally noting that she needed to request the time off work. She’d say it was for a family wedding - work wouldn’t be able to protest that.

“Nine weeks.” Chloe mumbled in a drowsy tone, and Beca wondered if her best friend was beginning to fall asleep.

Nine weeks to try to make it look as though they were real-life girlfriends. Beca swallowed loudly. That didn’t feel like very much time at all.


	5. The Practice

Chloe sat upright in bed, her face lit by her phone screen. Laid fast asleep beside her was her best friend in the bed they shared. Chloe still couldn’t believe that a couple of hours ago Beca had agreed to go with her as her ‘plus 1’ to her cousin’s wedding! She looked back at her phone and sent the text she’d just composed to her sisters:

## ❤ Un-BEALE-ievable ❤

 **CHLOE** : Beca’s agreed to be my fake girlfriend for Dana’s wedding :O

 **CLARA** : I KNEW she would

 **CALLIE** : You called it Clara ;)

 **CLARA** : I’m the best that’s why ;)

 **CHLOE** : So what do I do?? Do I tell Mom & Dad? Do I not?

 **CALLIE** : Tell them what?

 **CHLOE** : That I’m bringing Beca.

 **CLARA** : Definitely.

 **CALLIE** : Yes.

 **CHLOE** : And that we’re fake dating?

 **CALLIE** : No.

 **CLARA** : No!!

 **CATE** : I think you should probably tell Mom and Dad that you and Beca will be there together pretending to be dating for the sake of the family (Grandma will be thrilled).

 **CLARA** : That’s why she’s the eldest.

 **CALLIE** : Coco, you and Beca will obviously have to set some ground rules.

 **CHLOE** : Already done. She’s agreed to hand-hold, drape her arm over the back of my chair, and hold my waist ❤

 **CLARA** : And they say romance is dead :D

 **CHLOE** : No romance LaLa :(

 **CALLIE** : :(

 **CATE** : Still got that crush on her Coco?

 **CLARA** : Oh yeah, the crush! :(

 **CHLOE** : :'(

 **CALLIE** : Oh babe

 **CALLIE** : It’ll be okay ❤

 **CHLOE** : You’ve been saying that for years and it’s not got any better :''(

 **CATE** : Keep making the most of that time you get to spend with her, Coco ❤ not many people get to live with their crush, see them every day, and share a BED with them too!

Chloe let out a heavy sad sigh, looking up from her phone and back over at Beca. Her sisters were right of course, and she felt so lucky to have them in her life to help guide her and comfort her and provide her with words of wisdom. A sad smile washed over her face as she saw a tiny drop of drool begin to hang from the corner of Beca’s mouth. It didn’t matter how Beca looked, Chloe was never going to stop being in unrequited love with her.

—  **Two Days Later**  —

“Remind me what the plan is?”

Chloe let out a light sigh, choosing not to look at her best friend beside her but instead look down the platform for the impending subway they were waiting for.

“We’re just going to get on this subway like we would if we were dating, sit together as though we were dating, get off it together like we’re dating, then wander down to the café like-“

“-like we’re dating. I got it.” Beca finished for her, and the two women watched as the subway began to roll into the station. They’d both agreed that they needed to practice acting like a couple before the wedding in nine weeks time. They also both agreed that doing so in the apartment was a big no-go because their roommate - Amy - could return home at any time and catch them practising a ‘hand hold’ or a ‘casual hand on waist’ pose and  _immediately_  jump to conclusions. Which Chloe wouldn’t exactly hate, but Beca would.

Both Beca and Chloe went to take each other’s hand, assuming they would be the hand on top. They both paused, noting how their hands were in a bit of an odd tangle and looked up at one another.

“I thought I was the one taking your hand?” Chloe said with a furrowed brow but Beca looked defensive.

“Hang on, why do  _you_  have to be? Because you’re taller??”

“Um..well yeah?” Chloe replied as the subway pulled up before them. The two women dropped their hands.

“Nah, I’m gonna take your hand and lead the way. I’ll be the hand on top.” Beca said stubbornly, “It’s only right.”

“ _Why_  is it only right?” Chloe asked as the doors opened and passengers left the subway carriage they were due to get on.

“Because…you’re the more girlier.” Beca said simply with a shrug, though the tone she used told Chloe that she had a feeling she was losing.

Chloe scoffed, “It doesn’t matter who’s the more girlier, Beca. It’ll be  _my_ family wedding we’re going to. It’ll make sense for  _me_  to be on top.”

“Yeah, well…” Beca began then paused just as a bleeping noise sounded. Without any further words, the brunette grabbed Chloe’s hand and tugged the two of them up into the subway just as the doors were closing.

“…a good ‘top’ always pulls their girl onto the carriage  _before_  it leaves the station.” Beca exclaimed with a proud grin, “So there’s proof that I’m the top and you’re the bottom.” and Chloe rolled her eyes.

They still had their hands held, Beca’s the more dominant, and Chloe had to admit, it didn’t feel as uncomfortable as she thought it would. The two women looked around the carriage for a couple of spare seats and noticed some of the passengers staring at them. Beca and Chloe assumed it was because they were two women holding hands. But it was  _actually_  because they’d been loudly discussing who was the ‘top’ in their ‘relationship’.

Chloe let Beca guide her to a couple of seats and they sat together, a little closer than they usually would. Beca let go of Chloe’s hand and they both cleared their throats nervously.

“Oh.” Beca suddenly said, shifting her position to put her arm around the back of Chloe’s seat, but unfortunately the person sat behind them were a couple of mothers with their children on their laps. And those children were leaning on the backs of the seats in front of them - which happened to be the backs of Beca and Chloe’s seats.

“Um..” Beca said awkwardly as she brought her arm back down. Chloe smiled gently at the work Beca was putting into this whole practice run of being fake girlfriends.

“It doesn’t matter.” the redhead murmured, and she took Beca’s hand, holding it in Beca’s lap, “This’ll do.”

And Beca and Chloe both sat quietly, nervously, side by side on the subway - their first outing as fake girlfriends.


	6. The Journey

Beca stood somewhat nervously outside the airport, the huge suitcase on her left, Chloe on her right. Well, they were finally here. Nine weeks had flown by. And Beca had to admit, it hadn’t been the worst nine weeks in the world.

She no longer flinched when Chloe’s hand brushed hers. No longer felt awkward when she put her arm around Chloe’s waist or vice versa. In fact, she rather liked it (not that she was ever going to tell Chloe that).

Now they were here, it was time to pretend. They had to prove to all of Chloe’s family that they were dating. So Beca brought her hand down and took Chloe’s. But the redhead didn’t lock her fingers.

“Oh you don’t need to do that just yet.” Chloe said kindly, “My sisters know we’re not  _really_  dating.” and she pulled her hand from Beca’s to wave enthusiastically at a car approaching them.

“Oh.” Beca muttered, feeling a little stupid. She thought nobody in The Beale family knew about this secret fake relationship. And for some reason it made Beca feel the tiniest tinge of sadness - though she wasn’t sure why.

The car came to a stop before them and Beca watched as three redhaired women clambered out of the vehicle - all with very similar smiles and bright blue eyes. There was no doubting for a second these were Chloe’s older sisters, though Beca  _had_  met them before back in college during graduation when they and their parents had travelled to Barden to see the youngest Beale finally graduate.

Beca remained frozen to the spot while she watched Chloe cooing and squealing excitably as she hugged each of her sisters tight. That was one of the many things Beca loved about Chloe’s family - they were very close even though they were so many miles apart.

A small smile was on the brunette’s face as she looked at her best friend affectionately. She’d told herself recently that she was pretty lucky to have Chloe in her life. Chloe had kinda cultivated a softer side of her that Beca hadn’t thought possible. Like a light had been switched on in her head and her heart. That was when Beca realised that Chloe really  _was_  her very best friend.

“Hey Becaaaaa!” Clara, one of Chloe’s pregnant older sisters sang out to her with a bright smile, and Beca gave her a pursed-lipped grin, bringing a hand up to wave awkwardly.

“Uh, hello.”

“We hear you’re gonna be our baby sister’s date for the wedding tomorrow.” Callie - Chloe’s other pregnant older sister and Clara’s twin - added, her arm around Chloe’s shoulder, her hand squeezing Chloe’s cheeks together so that Chloe’s lips smushed. It made Beca chuckle. Maybe the next couple of days wouldn’t be so bad as long as Chloe’s sisters were around to keep the mood light and the pressure low.

“That’s me! Looking forward to making people as uncomfortable as possible, right Chlo?”

She watched as Chloe, who had just managed to squirm out of Callie’s hand, looked over at her with a flustered smile, “Um, yeah.”

“Come on kids,” Cate - Chloe’s eldest sister - instructed, “Let’s get you to the hotel. Dad’s dying to see you both.”

And Beca did as she was instructed, lugging the large suitcase into the trunk of Clara’s car before waiting patiently while all four of the Beale girls clambered into the vehicle. Chloe sat in the middle in the back with one tiny scrap of space next to her. Beca slipped into the car and, upon slamming the door shut, was given no choice but to sit smushed up against Chloe’s body. It was a little uncomfortable, but this was the very situation Beca had talked to herself about - she would much rather be smushed against Chloe than someone else.

“So have you been practicing how you’re both gonna play this thing tomorrow?” Callie asked, turning in her seat at the front to look at Beca and Chloe with a grin, “Kissing and all that stuff?”

Beca didn’t notice the warning glare Chloe was giving her big sister, she was too busy trying to control her blush. No they weren’t kissing. And no, the conversation of whether they would hadn’t come up since setting the ground rules nine weeks ago.

“Oh leave them alone, Cal.” Cate muttered, though a grin was also on her face, “Beca, I for one think it’s great what you’re doing for our little Coco. Dana is a tough one to keep up with. At least with you at the wedding people won’t end up telling Chloe what a disappointment she is.”

Beca’s mouth dropped open in shock. She had no idea Chloe’s family called her a disappointment!

“They don’t call me a disappointment..” Chloe tried to correct, but her flustered tone and smile told Beca that Cate was probably right.

“Uncle Mike  _definitely_  called you a disappointment a couple of Christmasses ago.” Clara said in a glum tone, “That’s why you didn’t go to the annual Beale Christmas get together last year.”

“Dude, you told me they’d cancelled it!” Beca hissed at Chloe, her brow furrowed. She watched as her best friend forced a smile onto her face and turned to her.

“I-I wanted to spend Christmas with you instead. You’d have made me go if I’d told you it was still on.”

But Beca’s mood had lowered and she had a sudden urge to protect Chloe in any way possible, “Yeah and I would’ve gone with you! Given  _Uncle Mike_  a piece of my mind!”

The brunette turned to look out of the car window, having succumbed to a bad mood, hating that her best friend had been treated so badly. Particularly when Chloe was such a good person. What she didn’t notice was the way Chloe and her three sisters looked at one another with soft smiles on their faces. They all appreciated the protective side of Beca, and Chloe’s sisters began to wonder if their baby sister was wrong. Perhaps Beca  _did_  have some romantic feelings for Chloe after all…


	7. The Room

Chloe leant over the suitcase that was now open on the large plush bed in the room that she and Beca would be sharing over the next couple of nights. It was far bigger and far better than their crappy fold-out bed at home that was for sure. As she began pulling their outfits out of the suitcase one by one she let out a light chuckle as she heard her best friend call out in amazement:

“ _Woah_!! This shower is MASSIVE!”

Chloe made her way over to their wardrobe, hanging their clothes up and she noticed Beca striding out of their ensuite, “What does your cousin’s husband-to-be do again?”

“He’s a banker.” Chloe replied in an unenthusiastic voice, and she began making her way back to the suitcase to continue emptying it.

“Huh.” Beca mumbled, also making her way to the suitcase, “Makes sense why we’re all staying in such a fancy place then.”

“Dana always did have the better everything. Obviously she just had to be marrying a banker too…” Chloe said in a sad tone, standing upright to tug one of her light summer dresses out. To her surprise she felt Beca smooth her arm around her waist, resting her hand on her hip, and the redhead turned to see Beca grinning at her.

“Yeah, but your girlfriend is a music producer who has worked with the likes of Snoop Dogg, Sia, and Katy Perry. She’s gonna have a hard time beating that!”

Chloe found herself blushing slightly, a soft smile on her face. And she felt a little overwhelmed with how sweet Beca was being. It was fake. It was  _all_  fake. But this fake girlfriend thing felt really nice, especially as she’d always wanted to date Beca back in college. This is how it could’ve been!

Suddenly there was a knock on the door and Chloe felt a little empty when Beca dropped her hand from her waist so she could wander over and open the door. The redhead watched as her father burst into the room, Beca standing back in shock, her hand still on the door handle as Mrs Beale followed closely behind her husband. Both wore huge beaming smiles on their faces as they strode over to their youngest daughter and pulled her into a huge tight hug.

“Oh I missed you guys so much!!” Chloe cried out in delight, her voice muffled within her parent’s embrace. She squeezed her eyes shut, relishing their warmth and familiar touch.

“We missed you too sweetheart!” Cathy Beale mumbled against her daughter’s head.

“Where’s your  _girlfriend_?” Bill Beale asked with a grin, the hug slowly unpeeling and Chloe looked over at Beca who had just shut the door to their hotel room over.

“Uh, hey there Mr Beale.” Beca said nervously, and Chloe watched in horror as her father laughed while striding over to her best friend and pulling her into a big Beale hug.

“Beca! We’re thrilled to have you in the family!”

“Daddy, put her down please!” Chloe whined, before adding a quiet “Mom,  _do_  something…”

She watched as her mother made her way over to her husband and her fake girlfriend. She’d told her parents about this arrangement she and Beca had agreed on. They  _knew_  it was only for a couple of days. And they  _knew_  it was only for the sake of the family. That Beca and Chloe weren’t  _really_  dating. Chloe just knew this was her father’s way of teasing Beca - and her.

Bill Beale stopped hugging Beca with a chuckle and put his hands on his hips, “Ah I’m only joking Beca. We know you and Coco are pretending to date for the sake of this wedding.

“From what I’ve heard, it’s your fault we have to do this whole thing in the first place…” Chloe said sharply to her father and she cocked an eyebrow while he looked at her - trying to seem as innocent as possible.

“Hey, I only did it to try to save your embarrassment.”

Chloe rolled her eyes with a heavy sigh. She hated people taking pity on her when this whole ‘not having a partner or any direction in life’ was nothing to do with them. Fortunately her mother knew her woes, and the eldest woman in the room cleared her throat.

“Why don’t we go down for dinner, huh? Everyone’s going to be there and they’ll be thrilled to see you, sweetheart.”

Chloe’s breath caught in her throat. Oh God, she’d totally forgotten there was going to be a meal with most of her family tonight. It meant that she and Beca had to start pretending they were dating  _a day before_ the wedding. And she wasn’t sure how Beca would feel about that.

She looked over at her best friend who swallowed loudly. Beca looked as nervous as she felt. Perhaps it was a good thing to have this meal before tomorrow? At least it might mean Beca would be less nervous tomorrow…?


	8. The Meal

Beca twiddled with the ring on her index finger nervously while Chloe explained to her Aunt what it was like living in Brooklyn. They’d been sat at the dinner table for around twenty minutes, and so far little to no conversation had honed in on Beca and Chloe’s relationship. But that was all about to change.

“And what is it you do, Beca? If you don’t mind me asking?” Chloe’s Aunt asked politely, and the colour drained from Beca’s face as she watched all the people sat around her, turn to look at her. She hated being the centre of attention.

“Uh, I’m a music producer. In Downtown Manhatten?” She managed to force out, her eyes flickering over to Chloe who sat beside her while Chloe’s Aunts, Uncles, and cousin’s turned to one another with impressed expressions. Beca saw a small encouraging smile grace her best friend’s face and a light calm wave rested on the brunette’s shoulders. Everything was going to be okay. Nobody was suspicious… _yet_. But for good measure, Beca reached out and slung her arm over the back of Chloe’s chair while turning back to the Aunt who had asked her the question.

“That sounds… _complicated_.” The woman offered and Beca swallowed loudly. Complicated? What did that even mean?

“Beca’s the best in the business.” Chloe said suddenly with a proud smile, and Beca felt her heart skip a beat when her best friend rested her hand on her thigh, leaning into her side comfortably. Beca couldn’t be sure why this felt so good. But it did. It felt… _right_.

“If she’s that brilliant, then why haven’t we heard of her before now?” came a humoured voice down the table and Beca looked at the man who had said it. She noticed he looked uncannily like Chloe’s father. But it  _wasn’t_  Bill Beale. It was the infamous Uncle Mike - Bill’s twin brother.

“Uncle Bill told us that Chloe was dating Beca when we saw them the other month, remember Daddy?” The bride-to-be said, looking from her father to Beca and Chloe with a kind smile. But Beca saw right through the smile. Dana wasn’t being nice. She looked as though she was trying to work Beca and Chloe out. As if she didn’t  _quite_  believe that Beca and Chloe were a couple…

This look only influenced Beca’s next move, the brunette bringing her free hand to take hold of Chloe’s hand that was still resting on her thigh. But it turned out Dana had misunderstood what her father had meant, and the older man grinned, “I meant, why haven’t I heard Beca’s name on the radio, or seen her face in magazines?”

“ _Because I haven’t been in FHM_ ” Beca thought to herself, but fortunately Chloe’s eldest sister piped up in Beca’s defence.

“Actually, if you look Beca up on Google you’ll find her listed on Billboard’s Top 10 Next Big Music Producers. ”

Beca watched in delight as Uncle Bill almost snorted the beer he’d been drinking out from his nose, and she looked over at Chloe’s sisters who were sat nearby with their respective husbands. Cate gave Beca and Chloe a wink with a mischievous smile before innocently taking a sip of her own drink. Clearly the older Beale sisters knew how to wind their bolshy Uncle up, and Beca liked it.

“Yeah she’s due to make a couple of million next month alone, so I heard.” Clara said with a shrug, causing beer to splurge from Dana’s banker husband-to-be’s nose. It was all a big lie. Beca couldn’t possibly tell the future nor how her career would go nor how much money she’d earn from her next project. But messing with the people who had the guts to make Chloe feel like a failure had Beca feeling very good about herself indeed.

“Why do you think she’s dressed so casually?” Callie said as nonchalantly as her twin sister had been, before whispering loudly, “Multimillionaire.”

It was true. Beca and Chloe were both dressed far too casually for their surroundings and company. They’d assumed it would be a ‘smart-casual’ affair so they’d tugged on a pair of fresh jeans each, a nice top each, and had even sorted their hair so they at least  _looked_  as though they hadn’t just been on a five hour flight - though everyone knew they had.

The problem was, once they had arrived downstairs for dinner, they’d quickly realised that it  _wasn’t_  smart-casual. It was just smart. And despite Chloe’s initial panic and Beca attempting to assure her that nobody had seen them so they could easily sneak back upstairs to change - they’d quickly been spotted by Chloe’s cousin Dana, who had seemed delighted to be reunited with her after a couple of years apart from one another. Chloe was a little less-so. Beca could tell.

The next course of meals began to arrive and Beca peeled her arm from the back of Chloe’s chair, sitting upright as her best friend was doing. She looked down at her Hollumi salad as it was placed in front of her, but felt Chloe’s hand slip onto her thigh again as the redhead brought her lips to Beca’s ear and mumbled in a low voice:

“I’m so sorry they brought up money.”

A small smile spread on Beca’s face and she turned to mumble back into Chloe’s ear:

“Could be worse.” she said in an amused tone as Chloe began taking a sip of wine, “They could’ve asked us about sex.”

And Beca let out a light chuckle as Chloe almost choked, her bright blue eyes flickering over to Beca’s before the redhead let out a chuckle of her own. Many members of the table hadn’t noticed this little interaction, too focussed on their food. But Chloe’s sisters all watched their little sister and her best friend curiously. What Beca and Chloe believed to be a perfectly unromantic interaction, was interpreted differently by Cate, Clara and Callie. And the three sisters shared knowing grins.

If Beca wasn’t in love with Chloe yet, then she certainly would be by the time this wedding was over…


	9. The Morning

Chloe let out a huge happy sigh, a massive grin on her face while she sat back and pushed her sweaty hair from her forehead. She was out of breath. But the adrenaline pumping around her body was a feeling she’d long missed.

The redhead looked up from her position on the bench to see her eldest sister arriving at a jog just after her and coming to a stop, far more out of breath than Chloe. The two Beale sisters were dressed in workout gear, while their other two sisters sat, heavily pregnant, on the other side of Chloe. All women were grinning.

“Did you get faster?” Cate asked with a gasp, trying to catch her breath while her hands remained on her hips, wincing from how tight her chest felt, “Or am I just getting slower?”

Chloe let out a light giggle while she glanced at her fitness watch. This had always been their thing. The Beale sisters had always been competitive, and would always go for a morning run whenever they were reunited again. And they would always sprint the final few yards as a race to see who would win.

“It’s definitely not my fastest time.” Chloe said with a heavy exhale and the twins beside her chuckled, having enjoyed watching their eldest and youngest sisters do a lap of the hotel grounds together.

“You’re just getting older Cate.” Callie said, winking at her big sister who simply stuck her finger up at her in response while still trying to catch her breath.

“Yeah that nine year age gap is really starting to show.” Clara giggled, smoothing her hand over her baby bump.

Chloe let out a content sigh, beaming from her two sisters on her right, up at her eldest sister before her. She loved spending time with them. It was easy company. She could just be herself without any judgement. These three women knew her better than anyone in the world and she trusted them above anyone else.

“Did Beca not want to go for a run this morning?” Callie asked innocently enough but Chloe snorted.

“Beca. Running. First thing in the morning?”

“I’ll take that as a no then.” Callie replied with a chuckle.

“Beca doesn’t do mornings very well. I just left her in bed.” Chloe said while reaching down to re-tie her laces. She missed the looks her sisters gave each other.

“Things are going pretty well between you two huh?” Clara asked, nudging her kid-sister with her elbow, and Chloe rolled her eyes while she continued to attempt to re-tie her other shoelace.

“What’s  _that_  supposed to mean?”

“It means we’ve seen the way she looks at you, Coco.” Cate said with a soft smile, sat on the paved ground in front of her younger sisters, finally catching her breath. Chloe paused her motion and swallowed loudly. She’d told her sisters when she’d been in college about the ridiculously huge crush she had on Beca. A secret that they’d all been sympathetic about. If this was them now attempting to tease her about it, then she wasn’t best pleased.

“Stop it..” Chloe mumbled with a light sigh, but she heard all three of her older sisters let out small squeaks of protest.

“We mean it Coco!” Callie said.

“Totally mean it!” Clara agreed, and Chloe sat up with another heavy sigh, surprised to see the women looking at her seriously.

“Beca looks at you with an expression that’s  _beyond_  that of someone who is  _pretending_  to be in love.” Cate said emphatically, and the twins nodded.

“She’s falling for you, Chlo.” Callie nodded.

“Definitely falling for you.” Clara agreed, and Chloe hesitated before shaking her head, her voice soft and vulnerable.

“It’s all fake. These couple of days…being in this relationship…it’s a fake relationship…it’s always going to be fake.” the youngest redhead let out a sad sigh, “Beca doesn’t like me as anything more than her best friend. And I’ve learnt to live with that. So…please don’t make me believe in something that isn’t true.”

Clara placed a gentle hand on her little sister’s arm and squeezed it affectionately, “But you don’t know that it’s not true Coco. Beca might only be taking part in this weekend because she wants to have an excuse to be close with you.”

Chloe scoffed, hanging her head as she looked down at her hands, “That’s where you’re wrong. I know Beca. And I know she doesn’t feel the same way for me as I do for her.”

The three older sisters looked at one another with concerned expressions. They hated seeing Chloe so unhappy and had had to endure years of comforting her while she went through the tourment of experiencing endless unrequited love for her best friend. But at the end of the day they were Beale’s at heart - forever optimists! And they were certain today’s wedding was going to be a turning point for the two young women..


	10. The Seats

Beca and Chloe strode down the corridor, following the signs that directed them towards the ceremony room of the hotel. Beca wore a beautiful tight black dress, a blue belt across her waist and blue heels to match, while Chloe walked by her side in a beautiful flowing blue dress with black swirls patterned across it, and black heels to finish. They complimented each other perfectly.

The two best friends finally arrived at the open doors of the ceremony room, hand-in-hand (as planned) and Beca held her breath, peering in nervously. The room was heaving with guests, eagerly awaiting the forthcoming ceremony. And Beca struggled to see where they were possibly going to sit.

“Over there.” Chloe whispered, giving her hand a quick squeeze, and Beca followed her fake girlfriend obediently, feeling a rush of relief when she saw that Chloe was leading them over to a row that was dominated by Chloe’s sisters, their husbands, and Cate’s two daughters: one that seemed of teenage age, and one that seemed around seven or eight.

Beca hated that her and Chloe’s arrival meant the row had to stand and move up a couple of seats, drawing everyone’s attention to them, but she felt a little calmer when she felt Chloe place her hand on the small of her back. She wasn’t doing this alone. And it was likely Chloe who was more nervous than Beca - Chloe knew most of these people and knew what they were like. Beca was just here to be - supportive best friend.

The brunette took a seat beside the teenager she knew to be one of Chloe’s nieces, and looked at Chloe as her best friend took a seat next to her. Beca had to admit, she’d found herself looking at Chloe a lot more recently. Maybe it was the hand-holding or their continuous close proximity to try to keep up this act of a fake relationship..but Beca was allowing her eyes to linger on Chloe’s face for longer than she’d ever used to before this weekend.

“Wow, you guys look great!” Clara whispered down the row towards Beca and Chloe with a big grin. The two women smiled back gratefully, linking hands again and letting them rest on Beca’s lap. So far so good. Nothing suspicious. Just two girls pretending to be girlfriends for the sake of keeping up appearances..

“Who’s that?” the youngest kid piped up, and Beca looked just past the teenager, over at the teen’s little sister. The brunette noticed the way Chloe’s eldest sister looked awkwardly at Chloe, before glancing at her husband who shrugged, then turned to her youngest daughter.

“That’s Beca, Auntie Chloe’s girlfriend.”

Beca swallowed loudly and she could feel Chloe’s hand go a bit clammy. It was one thing pretending to Chloe’s extended family. But to be lying to Chloe’s young nieces? There was something wrong with that.

Saskia’s eyes widened in confusion. Marlowe - Cate’s thirteen year old daughter - looked up from her phone and over at her youngest Aunt in shock.

“Girlfriend?” Saskia asked in her sweet little voice.

“Uh…yeah.” Beca croaked with a nod and as kind a smile as she could manage, “Yeah me and your Auntie Chloe are in relationship.”

“A relationship?” The seven year old echoed, furrowing her brow, “What’s a relationship?”

“Uh…it’s…um…” Beca mumbled, struggling to come up with an answer. Because ideally she wanted to come up with an answer that described exactly what she and Chloe were to each other. But this trip had got her thinking since they’d arrived here and had had to start pretending to be in love with each other. That maybe…she  _didn’t_  hate pretending as much as she thought she would do. That all of this hand-holding and arm-draping and mumbling into each other’s ears in public was actually quite… _nice_. And Beca didn’t really know what to make of those feelings yet.

“We make each other really happy, Kiki.” Chloe said softly, leaning on Beca’s thigh slightly to garner her youngest niece’s attention and Beca nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, uh…” Beca added, “Weeeee…well we live together, and share a bed-“

“-A bed?” Saskia interrupted, her bright blue eyes looking at her Aunt and Aunt’s ‘girlfriend’.

“Yeah.”

“Like Mommy and Daddy do?”

“Yeah Keeks,” Chloe confirmed in an amused tone, “We share a bed like Mommy and Daddy do.”

“What other stuffs?” the child asked. Beca and Chloe turned to one another. That was pretty much it. They were best friends of course. They did everything together. But how enamoured would a seven year old be with the answer ‘doing laundry together’ or ‘sharing the bills’ or ‘sharing a PT at the gym’?

“They kiss. Hug. Go on dates. Take part in activities naked in their bed…” came the bored tone of little Saskia’s teenage sister, and Marlowe looked back down at her phone with another sigh while her mother hissed her name in a warning tone.

Beca and Chloe froze, their eyebrows rising and Beca felt her heart rate increase tenfold. Shit. All that the teen had just described seemed…well, pretty normal for a couple in a loving relationship. But Beca and Chloe weren’t  _really_  dating. So they didn’t kiss. And they certainly  _didn’t_  take part in activities naked in bed!

She looked from Marlowe over to Saskia. The seven year old had scrunched her nose up.

“You  _kiss_??” Saskia squeaked and Beca was a little too shocked by the conversation to smile, even though the kid’s reaction  _was_  pretty funny. She did notice, however, the way that all three of Chloe’s older sisters, their husbands,  _and_  Chloe’s parents were now looking at Beca and Chloe with amused smiles on their faces. These eight people knew the truth. They knew Beca and Chloe were fake dating for this weekend only. So Beca couldn’t quite understand why they hadn’t advised the youngest child to stop asking questions. It was as though they were  _enjoying_  this situation.

Beca turned to Chloe awkwardly and noticed that the redhead seemed to be shooting a warning look at her family. A look that quickly changed to a softer smile when her eyes locked with Beca’s.

“Uh…yeah, we do.  _Obviously_.” Beca croaked, and her eyes briefly flickered down to Chloe’s lips then back again.

“Obviously.” Chloe mumbled, the redhead appearing to be a little entranced with Beca’s stare. Beca felt her heart skip a beat, butterflies beginning to race in her stomach. She hadn’t felt like this since college - when she and the rest of The Bellas waited side of stage to perform. She was nervous. She knew she was. And Beca knew that when she was nervous like this, it meant that whatever she was nervous about  _really_ mattered to her.

Being with Chloe  _really_  mattered to her. The thought of kissing Chloe  _really_  mattered to her. The chance to be Chloe’s fake girlfriend for the day  _really_  mattered to her.

And their gaze was broken by the sound of one of the ushers dashing down the aisle, hissing to everyone that the Bride had arrived. Beca turned to stare at the back of the head of the person sat in front of her, her mouth open slightly in shock. Chloe’s fingers were still entwined with hers, their hands resting in Beca’s lap, and Beca hadn’t realised she’d been running her thumb across her best friend’s thumb in a soothing motion.

Beca was feeling things for Chloe that she’d never really felt before. And it both shocked her and broke her heart. Because there was no way Chloe could ever feel the same way for her in return…


	11. The Photo

The ceremony had been a beautiful affair and Chloe swore she’d never seen her cousin look so happy as she did when Dana said “I do”. The guests spilled out onto the hotel grounds, taking advantage of the drinks on offer from the hotel waiting staff as the photographer began gathering the necessary guests for the photos that the bride and groom had requested.

Chloe stood happily, a flute of champagne in her left hand while her right hand was still being held by Beca’s. Chloe had been a little surprised with Beca’s continuity. The brunette had been really good at sticking to Chloe’s side, quick to take Chloe’s hand again not long after they parted.

They were stood with Chloe’s immediate family, Chloe’s parents chatting to one of Bill’s sisters while Cate, Callie and Clara watched Beca and Chloe like hawks. The youngest redhead looked at her best friend in surprise as Beca took a good long sip of her own champagne before the petite woman hesitated.

“What?” Beca asked with a curious smile but Chloe shrugged, a soft smile growing on her face.

“I thought you didn’t like Champagne…?”

“I don’t, but you know my thoughts on social situations.” Beca said with a shrug of her own, and Chloe furrowed her brow slightly, her curious smile still evident on her face.

“You  _do_  realise there’s beer over there.” she said, motioning to a waiter with a tray of elegant beer glasses, and she let out a light chuckle as her best friend’s eyes widened.

“Oh thank God.” Beca mumbled, “Be right back.” and Chloe grinned as she watched the woman make a bee-line for the waiter in question. She continued to watch, still struggling to believe that Beca was even here. And as her fake girlfriend. It was…both amazing and awful. She so desperately wished it could be real.

Chloe turned back to her sisters who were grinning at her. But the young woman rolled her eyes, muttering a low “Stop iiiiiiit” before jumping at the sound of her Uncle Mike’s big booming voice.

“Ladies!” and he arrived between Clara and Callie, grinning, holding what Chloe suspected was his third or fourth glass of Champagne already. “What a wonderful ceremony!”

The four sisters nodded and verbally agreed. Chloe always found it strange that the man looked so much like her father but was so far from him. Clara and Callie were twins, looked and sounded similar, and had similar personalities too. Had done since their birth thirty five years ago. But Mike and Bill Beale were noticeably different in personas and attitude. Chloe was forever grateful that her father was the nicer of the two.

“And Chloe, I noticed your girlfriend storming off just then. Hope there’s no trouble in paradise?” Uncle Mike said with a wink and a loud chuckle. Chloe was confused. Beca hadn’t stormed off. Yeah, she’d needed a proper drink, but that was only to calm her nerves. Not to get away from Chloe. Right?

“We’re fine Uncle Mike. Thanks.” Chloe forced with a nervous giggle, looking over at the waiter who Beca had approached. But Beca was nowhere to be seen and Chloe’s stomach sank. Oh God. Maybe he was right? Maybe Beca  _had_  ran off and had tried to make it look like she’d casually wandered?

“If you say so, Chlo-Bo.” The man said in a judgemental tone, raising his eyebrows sympathetically, “I’m sure it can be difficult being a lesbian in today’s society. I mean, it certainly explains a lot when it comes to you.”

Chloe felt tears prickling her eyes, but before she could say anything or turn and leave, her older sisters were quick to defend her.

“UH what’s  _that_  supposed to mean??” Cate snapped, her brow furrowed as she looked at the man with a stormy expression. A stormy expression that was matched by her other two sisters who looked furious.

“You have GOT to be kidding me!!” Clara snapped, her voice raised, her twin sister also getting involved with a sharp, “Oh fuck off!”

The colour drained from the man’s face as the three older sisters turned on him, glaring at him while they waited for a response. But no response was going to help him. Chloe knew that, and she began to calm. She could always count on her older sisters to stick up for her, no matter how old they all got.

“Hey, what’d I miss?”

Chloe let out a heavy sigh of relief as she felt Beca’s arm slip around her waist and she felt her cheek go numb as her best friend placed a kiss on the skin.  _Their first kiss_. Which…wasn’t exactly what people would generally class as a ‘first kiss’, but it was enough to have Chloe’s cheeks flush pink. She turned to Beca and saw the woman smiling calmly at her, a glass of beer in her hand.

“I…was just leaving…” Uncle Mike said in a nervous tone, taking a few steps backwards before striding away. But the older Beale sisters weren’t finished with him.

“Hold on, where do you think you’re going??” Cate called out, striding after him, and her younger twin sisters followed as close behind as their pregnant bodies would allow, with identical thunder faces.

Chloe watched with a slightly amused grin, a smile that grew when she noticed Beca leaning towards her out the corner of her eye, the brunette also watching the action with a furrowed brow, her arm still around Chloe’s waist. “What was all that about?”

“Uncle Mike blamed my failures on being a lesbian.”

“What??” Beca exclaimed, and Chloe noticed out the corner of her eye her best friend turn to look at her, somewhat outraged.

“I know I know, I’m not a lesbian but-“

“-no dude, it’s not that. I’m furious with him because you’ve not  _had_  any failures!” Beca explained and Chloe turned to the woman who still had her arm affectionately around her waist, “Unless you count me, then-“

“-You’re far from a failure.” Chloe quickly interrupted, and both their expressions softened as they looked into each other’s eyes, “You’re my greatest achievement.”

Chloe’s smile broadened as Beca rolled her eyes, muttering a low, “ _Weirdo_.” but the brunette’s smile grew, her cheeks flushing slightly while she looked into Chloe’s eyes.

That’s when they heard the loud snap of a camera, and the two best friends jumped as they turned to see one of the photographer’s assistants stood grinning at them with the camera in his hand, “You guys look really great together!” he said and Chloe felt her heart soar. She’d known it all along. She  _knew_  how good she and Beca looked together. But any time she thought about it - particularly today - she became sad. Because she knew today would be over in a heartbeat. And after today, they would no longer have a reason to be fake girlfriends. They’d go back to just being regular best friends, in their little studio apartment in Brooklyn, with their little shared bed and their little life together.  _Together_.

“One more?” The photographer suggested, and Chloe felt her stomach flip with excitement when Beca turned her body a little in towards Chloe, pulling into her tighter, and the two women posed with one another. Bright smiles on their faces. Happy. Together. Even if it was just for today…


	12. The Introductions

The dining hall was filled with chatter as the wedding guests swirled sugar and milk into their respective teas and coffees following a banquet of food that had been served at the wedding breakfast. Beca let out a heavy satisfied sigh as she smelt the black coffee in a posh cup before her.

There were few things in life that made her happy beyond anything. Coffee, as it turned out, was one of them. Music another. And…as the day carried on, the woman on her left was fast tracking up there in joining coffee and music as something that made Beca happy beyond anything.

Since arriving at the hotel yesterday afternoon, Beca was falling deeper and deeper in love with Chloe. Hurtling at the speed of light, finding more and more things to love about her. And the more she thought about it, the harder Beca fell. She was unable to stop herself. And that was the thing…Beca didn’t  _want_  to stop herself. She was blissfully happy where she was. With Chloe. Pretending to be her girlfriend. Enjoying this time with her.

Feelings didn’t get hurt when it was just pretend. It was the perfect arrangement.

A loud clinking sounded and the guests began to quieten. They looked over at the top table and saw the bride’s father stand, tapping his champagne flute. Uncle Mike had a big red nose - a clear sign he was drunk. And Beca cleared her throat uncomfortably. She really didn’t like that man.

But as he began speaking, Beca’s focus suddenly drifted from the top table when she felt Chloe gently smooth the palm of her hand onto her thigh. A small smile grew on Beca’s face, keeping her eyes on the top table.

“Good afternoon everyone! And thank you for joining us today and what is my eldest daughter’s wedding day.”

The guests sat before him cheered and clapped. Chloe’s siblings, their husbands, and Chloe’s parents clapped politely. But Beca and Chloe were completely preoccupied by Beca’s hand that had slipped over the top of Chloe’s on her lap, their eyes on the top table, but their minds on each other.

“And what a perfect excuse to gather two families together, all in the name of love.”

Chloe gently flipped her hand palm-up in Beca’s lap and Beca laced their fingers together before bringing her other hand over to hold Chloe’s hand in both of hers. They remained sat their in perfect silence, letting out light content sighs, their hearts racing happily. Then their stomachs dipped slightly with dread because both believed that the other was  _pretending_  to enjoy this contact and affection..

“Of course there’s many different types of love out there in the world…”

Beca leant her ear towards Chloe as the redhead leant her mouth towards Beca’s ear, and she smiled gently as Chloe whispered sweetly, “ _Uncle Mike’s speeches are renowned for taking an aaaaage when he’s drunk._ ”

“Today we’re celebrating the love between a man and woman. But we should also remember that another type of love can be between a  _woman_ and a woman.”

Beca and Chloe were too busy chuckling quietly while looking down at their hands to hear what Chloe’s Uncle was saying.

“And as many of you have seen today, my twin brother’s youngest daughter is now one of those women. Beca?”

Beca’s ear’s pricked up and both she and Chloe looked up, their smiles wavering as  _all_  the guests turned to look at them.

“Welcome to the family.”

Beca could feel a massive blush build in her cheeks as she heard Chloe clear her throat in embarrassment. Shit.

“I’m gonna kill him…” Cate muttered under her breath from her position beside Beca.

Callie meanwhile hissed at Clara, “This wasn’t exactly what I meant by ‘ _be more accommodating’_!!!”

“A round of applause for Chloe and Beca. They’re out and they’re  _proud_.”

Both Beca and Chloe sunk slightly in their seats as the surrounding tables of guests clapped loudly. They’d never felt more embarrassed in their lives as the eyes of a couple of hundred people watched them - some with stunned expressions, some a little disgusted, most looking at them in admiration.

Chloe brought her free hand up to her face to cup her cheek, nervously glancing at Beca with an awkward smile. Beca squeezed Chloe’s hand between her hands, glancing back at the redhead with an awkward grin of her own. They looked back at Chloe’s siblings and parents, the group all looking at them sympathetically.

Beca and Chloe both sighed. This was going to be a longer day than expected. At least they had each other…


	13. The Compliment

Chloe stood patiently by the bar of the hotel, waiting for her drinks order to be poured, a crisp $50 bill in her hand. She and Beca had both come to the conclusion that they needed stiffer drinks than the ones being offered at this wedding - particularly since Uncle Mike’s Father of the Bride speech which had completely outed Beca and Chloe as lesbians for each other. What most of the guests didn’t know was that Beca and Chloe were pretending to be in love. What Beca and Chloe didn’t know was that the other wasn’t really pretending. Beca was falling harder in love for Chloe, while Chloe’s deep love for her best friend still bubbled away.

“So you’re a lesbian now, huh?”

Chloe looked over her shoulder and saw one of Dana’s brothers - her slightly older cousin - stood behind her with an amused grin on his face. She’d never minded Bradley. The guy was a bit of a player, but with a father like Mike - a serial divorcee - who was really surprised about that? So she turned on the spot and leant back against the bar, a smile on her own face.

“ _Out and proud_ , as your Dad put it.” Chloe replied. She really had no idea what else to say. She couldn’t tell him it was all a lie. Hundreds of people at this wedding would be disappointed and she would be completely humiliated.

Brad took up a position beside Chloe, his back also against the bar, and they looked out at all the wedding guests. Chloe’s eyes immediately found Beca who was busy talking to Marlowe who had Googled Beca and, to the teen’s awe, had found out that Beca had worked with Katy Perry. Marlowe now appeared to be hanging onto every one of Beca’s casual words.

“I’m gonna be honest, Chloe.” Chloe turned to look up at her tall cousin, her smile wavering slightly. God, what was he about to say? Was he about to call her out?? “I’ve never seen you look so happy. None of us have.”

Chloe let out a small sigh of relief and looked back over at her best friend, her smile softening, “Well that’s because I’ve never felt so happy.”

The man let out a light hum, following her gaze, and after a couple of beats added, “Plus…she’s really  _hot_.” he said, nudging Chloe with his elbow and Chloe let out a chuckle at the compliment. She knew Beca was hot. She’d  _always_  thought Beca was hot. As far as her family were aware Chloe was dating this hot woman she’d met back in college. And she loved it.

“I’m serious - well done!”

Chloe grinned as she looked back at his cousin and he was watching Beca somewhat whistfully, shaking his head slightly, “Why are all the hot ones gay, huh?” He muttered, and Chloe felt a little guilty. The redhead still wasn’t overly sure if Beca  _was_  gay. Sure, they were here together as a couple. From Chloe’s recollection she couldn’t remember a time when Beca had stated she was attracted to women. But then…she couldn’t recall a time when Beca had stated she was attracted to me either. So it was anyone’s guess, really.

“Well this particular hot one is mine.” Chloe said in a light tone, turning just as her drinks order was being placed on the bar behind her, and her cousin watched as she held the bill out to the member of staff.

“Tumblers of whiskey and paying with a fifty?” Brad asked rhetorically with an impressed tone, “You’ve changed.”

“I’m full of surprises.” Chloe replied with a grin while receiving her change before picking the two drinks up, “See you later.” And she wandered off back over to her fake girlfriend and her eldest niece with a happy content smile on her face. Maybe this wedding wasn’t so bad after all.


	14. The Story

“So Beca, you’re a millionaire, huh?” Dana’s mother - Chloe’s Aunt - pried with wide eyes, desperate to hear more, “You must’ve taken Chloe on some pretty amazing dates.”

Beca and Chloe were stood awkwardly with Dana’s mother and Dana, all with glasses of alcohol in their hand. Beca was almost at the end of her second whiskey, Chloe just beginning  _her_  second whiskey. And the two ‘girlfriends’ were smiling politely, glancing at one another, their hands having not untangled from each other in a long while.

Shit. What the hell were they going to do? They’d prepared a back-story of how they’d met, which was essentially just the real way that they’d met with added ‘secret longing’. But neither of them had anticipated having to describe any dates.

“Um, we don’t really go on dates any more Aunt Sally.” Chloe tried explain in a flustered voice, but Beca turned to her and shrugged, their hands still entwined by their sides.

“I dunno babe, I’d say Paris was a good one?”

Chloe hesitated and her heart skipped a beat. Not only had Beca just called her ‘ _babe_ ’ for the first time ever, but she was suggesting they’d been somewhere they hadn’t. Meanwhile, Dana and Sally’s mouths dropped open.

“Paris?” Aunt Sally asked in awe and Beca smiled proudly as she turned to the two family members that had pulled them to one side for questioning. This whiskey was doing the trick.

“Yeah. It was our first date. I’d been wanting to ask Chloe out for ages and I just turned up at her work with an overnight bag and took her straight to the airport.” Beca said nonchalantly, as if what she’d ‘done’ was no big deal. But to her surprise, Dana wasn’t buying it. And it frustrated Beca to no end.

“You just…turned up at her work.” Dana said in a suspicious tone.

“Yes I just ‘ _turned up at her work’_.” Beca said in a baby voice to mock Dana’s tone, and the two women glared at each other. “We flew to Paris, ate dinner by candlelight at the top of the Eiffel Tower and stayed overnight at a plush hotel by the Arc de Triomphe.” Beca the brought her finger from her whiskey glass, pointing it accusingly at Chloe’s cousin, “ _And_  I made sure there were chilled bottles of Sancerre wine available because it’s Chloe’s favourite and I’ve only ever wanted the best for Chloe.”

Chloe’s heart was racing, her eyes having not left Beca’s face once. She was staring in disbelief. Where the hell had  _that_  come from?? It…it all sounded so  _perfect_! And  _romantic!_ And for the briefest of moments Chloe forgot that they were faking this romance for the sake of the family. For the briefest of moments she felt as though she and Beca  _were_ dating.

“That really happened Chloe?” Dana asked, her tone still suspicious.

Chloe cleared her throat and croaked out a quiet “Uhuh.” before clearing her throat again, “Yeah I was…um…” and she turned to her cousin, a soft smile on her face, “I was just re-living it.” she finished, squeezing Beca’s hand to somehow communicate to her best friend just how thrilled she was with Beca’s lie.

“So you two are really in love, huh?” Dana asked, folding her arms slightly, and Beca furrowed her brow. She didn’t like how hostile this woman was, and she had to admit to herself - if she wasn’t currently holding Chloe’s hand with one hand, and holding her whiskey in her other hand, she probably would’ve smacked Dana by now. Oh and the bride thing… if this hadn’t been Dana’s wedding day too…

“Uh yeah!” Beca replied aggressively, in unison with Chloe’s more cautious, “Of course we are.”

“Prove it.” Dana said with a sinister smirk. “Kiss each other. Right now. On the lips.”


	15. The Kiss

Chloe let out a sharp breath of air, raising her eyebrows in shock. There was no way she and Beca were just going to kiss - no matter how much Chloe secretly wanted to. They hadn’t even had enough alcohol to drink for them to blame the kiss on. And unsurprisingly, Beca appeared to be just as shocked, the brunette letting out a choked “Wha-hat?”

“Dana, we’re not just gonna kiss because you  _demand_  we do it.” Chloe tried to protest, but her cousin simply rose her own eyebrows, looking back at her seriously. Why was she being like this?? Sure there’d been this underlying competitiveness between them since birth - a competition their fathers seemed to have unspokenly caused for some reason. But there was no need to Dana to be suspicious.  _She’d won_.  _She_ was the one who had got married first.  _She_  was the one who had fallen in love with a handsome rich banker.

“Why not?” Dana asked seriously, and just as Beca and Chloe let out nervous chuckles, she added, “I mean it. If you two are  _so_  in love, then why don’t you just kiss?”

“Because…” Chloe began before hesitating, trying to think of an answer that was far from the truth - one that wasn’t ‘because they were only  _pretending_  to date’, “…we don’t like PDA!”

But Dana scoffed, her arms still folded and she rolled her eyes, “Yeah right, Chloe. You once brought your boyfriend home from college for the Christmas holidays and spent most of it making out with him in the kitchen or the lounge!”

Chloe felt her cheeks flush pink in embarrassment. She used to be completely obsessed with Tom in her first few years of college. But then Beca had come along…

“You know what?” Beca burst all of a sudden, Chloe knowing exactly what that tone of voice meant. It meant Beca was getting ready to fight. Which meant Beca was getting ready to storm off… “Screw you!!” Beca barked.

To Chloe’s surprise she felt Beca turn her slightly towards her, and in one clean swoop, the brunette broke their hand-hold, and pulled Chloe by the waist, their lips immediately meeting. Their eyes snapped shut as they shared their very first kiss. And the redhead was so shocked, she did little more than let out a light squeak before bringing her now free hand up to Beca’s cheek to cup it gently.

This hadn’t been part of the plan. Nothing in the rules they’d mapped out nine weeks prior to today had mentioned anything about kissing or even  _one_  kiss. Yet here they were. Their mouths slightly parted while their faces rocked everso slightly, the firm kiss so very obviously shared between two people who cared very much about each other.

Chloe felt Beca pull out of the kiss and the kiss broke with a loud smack. The redhead’s eyes fluttered open and she saw Beca swipe her tongue over her lips while turning to face Dana again, this time with a victorious expression. And Chloe’s heart sank. Beca hadn’t kissed her because she’d wanted to. She’d kissed her to prove a point to her aunt and cousin. Because they  _weren’t_  together.

Chloe could still feel the pressure of Beca’s lips on hers even though her best friend had now turned away. Like it was a scar, forever etched on her skin. A forever reminder that it had finally happened. Beca had  _finally_  kissed her.

“We shouldn’t have had to do that.” Beca snapped at Dana, the bride looking a little more convinced than she had been, but not  _completely_ convinced. The brunette was annoyed. But not because she’d just had to kiss Chloe. She’d…been wanting to kiss Chloe all day and had been pleased to be provided with the opportunity. No, she was annoyed because the kiss hadn’t been how she’d wanted her first kiss with Chloe to go. And she blamed the two women before her entirely.

But just as she was about to say something else, a woman dressed in a smart pant-suit strode up to Dana and tapped her on the shoulder, slicing through the strained atmosphere and drawing the group of women back into reality.

“Excuse me. Dana? It’s time for your first dance.”

Dana forced a smile onto her face, glancing at Beca and Chloe one last time before striding off after her wedding coordinator. Aunt Sally cleared her throat nervously having watched her daughter walk off and turned back to her niece and niece’s ‘girlfriend’.

“Sorry ladies. You know how she can get when she’s stressed. Today’s been wonderful but Dana loves things to be perfect..” and the mother of the bride smiled politely at Beca and Chloe just as the wedding coordinator asked in a microphone for the guests to gather around the dance floor. She walked away, leaving Beca and Chloe stood side by side, trying to come to terms with what they’d just done - neither regretting it in the slightest, but both assuming the other had put up with it for the sake of their ‘fake romance’.

“I…guess we’d better watch this first dance?” Chloe suggested quietly, looking over at the dance floor as the lights began to lower and guests surrounded the large area before them.

The brunette knocked back the rest of her whiskey and winced before motioning at Chloe’s half-full whiskey glass, “Want one more drink?”

Chloe hesitated, taking a moment to look at her best friend. Beca was a lightweight. Chloe was a lightweight. One more drink so soon after this whiskey could have them doing or saying something they’d later regret. But it  _would_  be a good excuse…

Beca watched in awe and a tiny bit of concern when the redhead began slurping large mouthfuls of her whiskey. “Uh..I didn’t..” Beca began, pausing for a moment as Chloe brought her index finger up to stop her mid-sentence while she continued drinking, “mean you had to finish that one…right away.” she mumbled.

Chloe finished the drink with a long “ahhh” and held the glass out to her best friend with a smile, “Same again.”

“Yeah I’ll…” Beca said as she took the glass. She felt the alcohol taking affect, giving her a very comfortable and happy buzz. This was the best bit about drinking whiskey and she hoped to God she wasn’t going to throw up everywhere later tonight. There’s no way Chloe would want to kiss her again tonight if she did. “…I’ll get us another drink. Meet you over there.” Beca added, motioning to the crowd by the dance floor just as the first dance song began to play.

Chloe nodded, turning on the spot and began making her way over to the crowd. Her head was beginning to feel light from the alcohol she’d just quickly consumed and she found that she was blinking slowly.

God, she was so in love with Beca it hurt. Maybe tonight she should tell her? Just…get it over and done with. What’s the worst that could happen? Beca didn’t exactly have anywhere to run…


	16. The Dance

Chloe had managed to wade her way to the front of the crowd of guests and was now stood looking out through the dark of the venue. Before her stood her cousin and her cousin’s new husband, slow-dancing to  _[Thinking Out Loud](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fopen.spotify.com%2Ftrack%2F34gCuhDGsG4bRPIf9bb02f%3Fsi%3D8s0uQYZMSqqZUFgdMrUiLw&t=ZDdjNzYxNTU0N2FiYjAyOTg0MzJkZmUyYTA4YTJhYTRlYTVmNDQ1MSw2ZGMzNGEyNmQ0ZGMzMjI5YjM2Njc2ZmFmZGY1NDk4MWU5Yzk5MmNj)_ by Ed Sheeran.

“ _Of course this would be their first dance song._ ” Chloe thought to herself, this song also being her choice for a first dance song should she ever be in the fortunate position to get married one day. The redhead swayed slightly, the whiskey she’d just thrown down her throat now taking full effect on her body.

By the time the second verse came along, someone on the mic invited guests to join the bride and groom on the dance floor. Chloe looked longingly as Dana and her husband grinned at their guests, motioning for them to all come onto the dance floor. But guests seemed reluctant.

Suddenly she felt a hand smooth across her lower back, and a familiar petite frame lean into her side, her warm breath against Chloe’s ear as she said over the sound of the music, “Will you dance with me?” and a smile spread across Chloe’s face as Beca took her hand and led her a few paces onto the large dance floor. They weren’t in the centre, but they didn’t want to be.

Beca came to a stop and let out a content sigh, smiling as Chloe stood before her. They hadn’t rehearsed this. They hadn’t planned where their hands would go or how their bodies would fit against each other’s. They just…did it.

Chloe’s hands slipped around Beca’s waist while Beca’s arms smoothed up over Chloe’s shoulders, her hands snaking beneath the woman’s red hair. And they began slow dancing in a small circle, forgetting completely about the guests whose attention had diverted from the bride and groom to Beca and Chloe. And the two women brought their faces a little closer together, soft smiles on their faces, both relishing this moment.

“What happened to the drinks?” Chloe mumbled into Beca’s ear and the brunette smiled.

“Left them at the bar. I figured this’d be an opportunity wasted if I didn’t find you.”

Chloe drew her bottom lip between her teeth, her eyes briefly looking over Beca’s shoulder at some of the guests watching them. All of them had smiles on their faces, and she spied her older sister’s in particular beaming over at her. Chloe suddenly felt embarrassed. This was everything she’d ever wanted and they knew that. But at the same time Chloe still knew it was all for show. There was no way Beca felt the same way, right?

“People are watching…” Chloe muttered in a timid voice, bringing her attention back to her best friend she was slow dancing with. But Beca looked at her with hooded eyelids and a gentle smile. She was evidently getting drunker by the hour.

“So let them watch.” Beca mumbled back, and Chloe felt her heart skip a beat when the woman leant her forehead against hers. Intimate once again, except this time it was on a public stage. And neither of them seemed to care.

Their breath hung in their lungs, their mouths open slightly as they both looked down at each other’s lips. Their smiles dropped. Then ever so slowly, they closed their eyes and drew their faces together, sharing a soft kiss. Their second ever kiss. The way their first kiss should have been.

Beca felt adrenaline rushing around her body, her lips tingling with the pressure of Chloe’s mouth, and she inhaled heavily through her nose before they both broke the kiss naturally, letting out heavy sighs. They parted their faces slightly, their eyes slowly fluttering oprn, and they looked into each other’s eyes with hesitation.

They’d stopped dancing. And the room around them felt as though it had sunk away. Beca knew that Chloe was just doing this to show more evidence to her family that they were in a romantic relationship together - even though they weren’t. Even though they were fake dating for the sake of today. And Beca felt a tinge of sadness that this would all be over after tonight. That they’d no longer be fake girlfriends. They’d just be best friends. That Chloe would never feel the same way in return.

Chloe meanwhile could feel her heart racing with excitement and nerves. That right there was the best kiss she’d ever had - and she was fairly certain it had nothing to do with the alcohol in her system. It was all to do with Beca and how Chloe had wanted to kiss her for around seven years. This was almost like a reward for being so patient. And a small part of Chloe’s heart broke. The dream would be over after tonight. They’d no longer be fake girlfriends. Just best friends. No more hand holding or mutterings into each other’s ears or  _kisses_. Back to the cold reality. Because there was no way Beca would ever feel the same way in return.

Both women took deep breaths, then threw their mouths together again, this time kissing with far more passion and longing than they ever had before. They inhaled deeply through their nose. This was what they’d both secretly wanted to do all day, and Chloe curled her arms tighter around Beca’s waist while the brunette cupped Chloe’s neck, her fingers drawn to the back of her scalp so she could keep the kiss firm. Their tongues quickly slipped into one another’s mouths and neither woman noticed the way the guests around them had begun whooping and cheering.

After a couple of minutes their make-out session came to a natural end, and they slowly parted their faces, letting out heavy content sighs. Their foreheads remained against each other and they both let out light chuckles as they began slow-dancing again, big grins on their faces.

Beca didn’t care for the moment that after tonight she’d never be able to kiss Chloe again. Chloe didn’t care for the moment that after tonight she’d never be able to kiss Beca again.

For the moment, they had now. They had each other. And even if they believed the other was pretending, as it stood, both had never felt more in love with the other than they did right now..


	17. The Fireworks

Beca stood patiently out in the lobby, wanting to speak to one of the members of staff of the hotel. She was still feeling a bit drunk, but since kissing Chloe on the dance floor a little while ago she’d been fuelled to want to do something nice for her best friend. Her  _crush_. She wanted to send some flowers up to their room addressed to Chloe. To say how beautiful she’d looked today. How beautiful she looked every day. It wasn’t an admission of love - after all, Chloe couldn’t possibly feel the same way for Beca as Beca did for her. But it was something nice. Something Beca never normally did.

“Wow, you’re somewhere  _without_  Chloe?”

Beca turned on the spot to see Chloe’s eldest sister wandering over to her with a grin, her tone having sounded teasing, and she stopped beside the brunette. Beca grinned.

“I have been known to do things on my own.” Beca replied in amusement, turning and leaning her back against the wall, still wanting to keep an eye out for a member of staff. She really did want to order those flowers quickly and get back to Chloe. She was feeling a little vulnerable without her best friend by her side, even though this  _was_ only Cate she was talking to.

“I’m sure.” Cate mused, leaning her own back against the wall beside the petite brunette, “You guys just seem really happy together, that’s all.”

Beca shrugged, an embarrassed smile spreading across her face, “Yeah, well, we make each other happy.” a smile that wavered when she realised her walls were beginning to drop. She couldn’t tell Chloe’s eldest sister she was secretly in love with Chloe. Cate would probably tell Chloe, then Chloe would freak out and storm away and…Beca didn’t want to lose Chloe as a friend. That’s why it was important to keep this act up when she and Chloe were around Chloe’s extended family, and important to maintain to Chloe’s siblings and parents that none of this was real.

“Not…anything more than normal though.”

“We saw you two kissing on the dance floor earlier, Beca.” Cate tried to explain, her eyebrows raised as she looked at the brunette with an amused smile, “That wasn’t the way two people kiss if they’re  _just friends_. Chloe  _means_  something to you.”

“Well of course she does, dude, she’s my  _best friend_ -“ Beca exclaimed, getting a little defensive, but Cate interrupted her with a curious tone.

“-You didn’t  _have_  to slow-dance on that dance floor, but you did. You didn’t  _have_  to kiss on that dance floor, but you did..”

“Yeah, to stop your family from ridiculing Chloe!” Beca said defensively, her voice getting louder in volume, but to her frustration Cate was a Beale. And Beale’s never quit. So the thirty seven year old ploughed on.

“You’re  _in_   _love_  with her Beca!” Cate cried out in a slightly exasperated tone, “I can see it. Clara and Callie can see it. Mom and Dad can see it. It’s just driving us crazy that  _Chloe_  can’t see it!” Beca turned to face Chloe’s eldest sister with a growl.

“It’s fake! It’s all pretend, just for this wedding!” Beca yelled, her voice echoing off the walls, “Me and Chloe  _aren’t_  in love, we  _aren’t_  dating, and we  _aren’t_  flying home together tomorrow to spend the rest of our lives in a beautiful romantic relationship all  _happily ever after_!”

Beca took a deep breath, watching as the colour drained from Cate’s face, the older woman now looking over Beca’s shoulder. The brunette turned just as she heard a loud “aha!” and her stomach dropped. Her deep blue eyes fell on the figure of Dana, the bride smiling victoriously at Beca.

“I  _knew_  it! I  _knew_  you two weren’t really together!”

Beca tried to force some words out but she was frozen to the spot.  _Fuck_. She watched in horror as the woman before her strode off and Beca began to panic. Dana was headed outside, in the very direction of the place Beca had left Chloe with Clara and Callie, the guests having been gathered outside ready for some upcoming fireworks.

Dana was going to confront Chloe. Chloe was going to be embarrassed, and potentially never want to speak to Beca again. Beca had to stop her. She had to stop Dana before it was too late.


	18. The Misunderstanding

Chloe sat on a bench out in the hotel grounds, unaffected by the cool winter air thanks to the alcohol jacket within her body, and the leather jacket around her shoulders that Beca had nipped upstairs to get for her not too long ago. She had a calm content smile on her face, waiting in eager anticipation not only for the fireworks expected to go off at any moment now, but for the return of her best friend who had mumbled something about needing the bathroom and quickly scuttling into the hotel.

“So, Coco. How was it making out with Beca, huh?”

Chloe felt her cheeks flush and was relieved that it was quite dark. She pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth and turned to her left to look at her twin sisters who were sat beside her, both grinning.

“Amazing.” she mumbled, an embarrassed smile spreading across her face. Clara and Callie both cooed excitably, Clara nudging her little sister with her elbow.

“So you gonna tell her how you feel?” Callie asked in a giddy tone.

“Yeah, she totally digs you, Coco!” Clara added.

“Guuuuuys!” Chloe whined, throwing her hands to her face to hide her embarrassment. But her sisters both giggled.

“Oh come  _on_!” Callie insisted, “She’s been holding your hand most of the day. She asked you to dance. You guys  _kissed_!“

“She’s just pretending…” Chloe began, bringing her hands down with a sigh, but her sister’s were persistent.

“ _She’s not pretending_!” they both said in unison, big smiles on their faces while their little sister hesitated.

“Coco, she’s  _crazy_  about you!” Clara said, “She has this expression on her face whenever she looks at you!  _And_  she went all the way back to your room to get you  _her_  jacket to give to you because you said you were cold!”

“ _Completely_  besotted.” Callie agreed and Chloe felt her heart begin to race. Maybe her sisters had a point? That kiss she and Beca had shared on the dance floor earlier  _had_  been amazing. And the more Chloe thought about it, the more she considered the possibility that maybe, just  _maybe_ …Beca felt more for her? Maybe Beca was as in love with her as she was with Beca? Maybe there was more to their earlier kiss than just pretending for the sake of her extended family?

A soft smile was now on Chloe’s face and her twin sisters appeared to have tears brimming in their eyes as they looked at her. They knew her better than anyone. And they knew what that smile meant. It meant that Chloe believed them.

“I should tell her.” Chloe finally said, letting out a light chuckle as her sisters both cheered gently.

“Yes you  _should_!!” they both cried out in unison, completely thrilled that their little sister was finally going to tell the woman she’d been in love with for years how she really felt. It was going to work. It was  _completely_ going to work. And then Chloe and Beca could  _finally_  start the next stage of their lives together - this time in a romantic relationship instead of a ‘platonic’ one.

“H’okay.” Chloe said with a heavy sigh, trying to calm her nerves before letting out a sweet chuckle. “God, I can’t believe I’m finally gonna do it!”

Clara and Callie both chuckled with her, as equally excited as their baby sister was. But suddenly the three redhead’s smiles dropped when they heard the sharp sound of their cousin’s voice approaching them.

“You guys are  _faking_  it??”

Chloe’s stomach dropped and she quickly rose to her feet, turning to see Dana arrive, looking incredulous, her chest rising and falling such was the speed she’d been striding at.

“Wh-“ was all Chloe could choke out before Dana scoffed.

“Oh God, it’s one thing to start making out with another girl on the dance floor during MY first dance ON MY WEDDING DAY - but to do it with a girl you forced to come here, with you, JUST to steal my limelight?!”

Chloe sensed Clara and Callie rising to their feet behind her, but she was too focussed on watching Beca dashing out of the hotel, darting over towards them, with Cate close behind.

“How-?” Chloe asked quietly, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

“I heard Beca saying in the lobby that it was all pretend.” Dana said with a gloomy expression, clearly annoyed that her cousin had tried to sabotage her big day by bringing along a fake girlfriend. “That you guys aren’t in love, and you’re not in a relationship. That everything you’ve done today has all been  _fake_.”

“Chloe!” Beca said with a huge heavy exhale of breath, tears in her eyes as she finally arrived by their sides. But Chloe was stunned. Everything that Dana had said was true. They  _weren’t_  in a relationship. It was all pretend. None of it meant anything to Beca, not like it did to Chloe. And it was this horrible reality that came crashing down over Chloe once and for all. She felt like a fool for believing for the briefest of moments that Beca felt anything more for her than just friendship.

“I knew something was up. I just can’t believe you’d stoop this low to try to get back at me for all those years that I was better than you in school.” Dana finished, her arms crossed in bitter disappointment.

Chloe was horrified, humiliated, and became more upset by the second. She glanced at Beca who was looking at her desperately and that was when her heart sank. Clearly Beca was desperate to apologise to her for revealing their secret. For telling Dana and God knows who else in that lobby the truth. With little more left to say, she let out a loud sob, then strode away towards the hotel.

“ _Chloeeeee_ …” Beca muttered in a disappointed voice as Chloe shoved past her, but Beca didn’t run after her. She didn’t dare. She knew Chloe well enough to know that chasing after her wouldn’t help matters. Not right now.

Fortunately Cate took it upon herself to stride after her youngest sister, knowing best how to console Chloe after years of experience. Clara and Callie, however, had turned on their cousin, their faces glaring at her. But Dana had clearly had enough of her cousin’s screwing up her wedding day, and she pointed her index finger at them.

“Don’t you dare get all defensive! You know this was wrong!” she snapped, and for once the twins remained quiet. Because Dana had a point. In a way Chloe and Beca  _had_  kinda stolen the limelight unintentionally. They could see why the bride would be unhappy about that.

They watched as Dana marched off to find her new husband so they could watch the fireworks display together. Beca, however, took a seat on the bench with a heavy sigh, hanging her head in disappointment. And Clara and Callie had no real choice but to take a seat either side of the young brunette.

The fireworks display began, but none of the three women were particularly enamoured by it. They all felt sick in the pit of their stomachs.

Chloe was upset. She was hurting. And none of them really knew what could be done to fix the situation…


	19. The Next Morning

The floor was cold and Beca woke up by the door of the hotel room the next morning. She’d given up hoping that Chloe would come back to that bench to talk to her. So she’d said goodnight to Callie and Clara (who hadn’t said much to her during the time they were sat together - all too shocked by Chloe’s departure) and had made her way back up to the hotel room she was sharing with Chloe, hoping her best friend would be in there.

Chloe hadn’t been. So Beca had decided in her tipsy state to lay on the floor by the door, in case Chloe snuck back into the room. She wanted to speak to Chloe the second she saw her. To apologise. To tell her how she really felt. That none of it had been pretend for her. Well…maybe it had at first but things had changed.

Beca sat up slowly, letting out a heavy sigh, and stretched, hating the icky taste she had in the roof of her mouth. Her tongue felt furry. God, why hadn’t she cleaned her teeth when she got back up here last night?

Suddenly she let out a small yelp, and at the same time heard a small squeak. The door of the hotel room had opened gently and had knocked into Beca. The brunette launched to her feet and stepped away just as Chloe stepped inside nervously. The redhead’s make-up has been removed overnight and her cheeks still looked a little puffy. Beca’s heart sank. Chloe had been crying. Enough to still look like she had been, even now it was seven hours later.

“Sorry.” Chloe whispered, closing the door behind her. But Beca’s heart was beginning to race. All of this had been her fault.

“No, I’m the one who should be apologising. I shouldn’t have sai-“

“-it’s okay.” Chloe quickly interrupted, and Beca paused. It was  _okay_? It definitely didn’t  _feel_  okay. Chloe was stood in a set of pyjamas Beca didn’t recognise - presumably Cate’s - and she noticed that Chloe was holding a hanger with yesterday’s dress on it.

“I mean you were right, right?” Chloe said, wandering over to their shared suitcase they’d stored by the hotel wardrobe, tugging the case up onto the bed and opening it, “This whole ‘fake dating’ thing was only for a couple of days. We could only keep it going like that for so long. It was all pretend.”

Beca was a little lost for words as she watched her best friend beginning to pack their clothes that were hung in the wardrobe. She wanted to tell Chloe how she really felt. That she’d fallen in love with her. That, if Chloe wanted, they could keep it going. Or-Or even start afresh, a clean slate where they knew where they stood. Because they would be so in love with each other that it wouldn’t matter so long as they had one another.

“I mean, it’s not like we’re in love with each other. We’re not. So…” Chloe paused as she flattened the final pieces of clothing in the suitcase and sniffed loudly, trying to keep back the tears that had ran out. She wouldn’t be able to cry any more any time soon. She let out a sigh and turned to face her best friend with a shrug.

“It doesn’t matter. None of this matters. You’re free. You can…” and Chloe looked to a different part of the room, hating the gaze her best friend was giving her. It hurt enough that Beca didn’t like her in the same way that she liked Beca. It hurt even more the way Beca had humiliated her by telling Dana that it was all pretend.

“…you don’t have to be tied down any more this weekend.” Chloe finished, turning back to the suitcase to zip it up.

Beca swallowed loudly, “Right. Uh…thanks.” she replied quietly.

There, Chloe had said it. Clearly. They  _weren’t_  in love. It was all pretend. And it’s what got Beca feeling the most sad. Because at one point yesterday she’d started to convince herself that maybe Chloe was feeling the same way she did. That maybe this trip was the start of something new. Something better.

But to both Beca and Chloe’s disappointment this weekend  _did_  mark the start of something new. The start of an awkward part of their complicated ‘platonic’ relationship. Both utterly convinced that the other was definitely  _not_  in love with them, when the truth was Chloe was still secretly very much in love with Beca. And Beca was still secretly very much in love with Chloe..


	20. The Goodbye

Beca stood nervously in the lobby of the hotel, watching while a tired looking Chloe said goodbye to her parents. Bill and Cathy looked concerned while they pulled their youngest daughter into their arms to hug her tight and the second they looked over Chloe’s shoulder at Beca, the brunette snapped her gaze down to her feet miserably. She felt horrible. This was  _not_  how this weekend was supposed to end. They should’ve been saying goodbye to Chloe’s immediate family with huge smiles on their faces, walking out to their Uber hand-in-hand, pretending until the second they left the hotel that they were still a couple.  _Pretending_. Beca let out a heavy sigh. Chloe had definitely been pretending this whole time. How could she have thought the redhead wasn’t?

“Thanks for coming along, Beca.”

The brunette jumped at the sound of Cate’s cautious voice, the woman having approached her, placing a gentle hand on the young woman’s shoulder. Beca looked up and swallowed loudly. God, the redhead looked  _sympathetic_. She hated it when people looked at her like that.

“Thanks for coming along and ruining Chloe’s weekend you mean.” Beca muttered in a low voice, trying to fight back the tears that had been hanging in her eyes for hours now. She wasn’t one for crying. But she was one for looking like she was  _about_  to cry whenever she was upset about something. Whenever something seemed unfair.

“You didn’t ruin all of it. You came here because Chloe asked you to. And she enjoyed it…for the most part.” Cate attempted to reassure, but Beca had already turned to look at Chloe with a sad expression on her face. The brunette let out a heavy sigh, not noticing the way Chloe’s other two sisters had approached Cate. Not noticing the way all three of Chloe’s older sisters were watching Beca watch Chloe longingly.

“I’ve only ever wanted the best for her.” Beca mumbled vulnerably, the young woman so tired and hungover that she hadn’t really comprehended what she’d just said.

“What if the thing that’s best for her is you?” Clara suggested in a gentle tone, and Beca shook her head slowly. But just as she was about to respond, Chloe had pulled out of the hug with her parents and began wandering over to the suitcase that happened to be beside Beca. Beca’s heart raced with nerves as Mr & Mrs Beale approached, but to her relief they both pulled Beca into a hug of her own.

“Thank you for joining us this weekend Beca.” Cathy Beale said, and her husband nodded as they all broke the hug.

“Yeah. And sorry my family’s so messed up. My brother…he can be a bit of a dick.”

A tiny sad smile poked into the corner of Beca’s mouth and she took a deep breath. She didn’t know it, but Chloe’s sisters had all consoled the youngest Beale sister in Cate’s room overnight. They’d also informed their parents of the situation. And although Mr & Mrs Beale has attempted to explain to their youngest daughter that they truly believed that Beca  _did_  have feelings for Chloe, Chloe still dismissed the notion.

Cate, Callie, Clara and their parents had all agreed that there was nothing more they could do. That it was down to Beca and Chloe to work this out themselves. So the family reluctantly said their goodbye’s to the two women and watched as Beca and Chloe made their way out to the Uber that would take them to the airport, both noticeably less close than when they arrived.

“You think they’ll figure it out?” Callie asked, watching as her youngest sister clambered into the car and slammed the door shut. She heard her twin sister sigh heavily, felt her husband place his arm comfortingly around her shoulders, and sensed her parent’s hesitation.

“God, I hope so.” Cate replied, her eyes now following the vehicle as it drove Beca and Chloe away. Only time would tell…


	21. The Distance

It was killing Chloe to be sat so close to Beca but feel so far away from her. They’d been on this flight for almost three hours now. And not one word had been spoken between them except for the couple of times Beca had waved her hand in front of Chloe’s face to gain her attention and ask if she could get up so she could pop to the bathroom.

Chloe had kept her flight headphones on pretty much the whole trip so far, watching but not really  _processing_  the Gossip Girl marathon that was available as the in-flight entertainment. Her entire focus was on how wonderful then how horrible the previous day had been.

Beca, meanwhile, had been on her MacBook, doing some mixing. Chloe knew that was how her best friend relaxed. She knew that was what Beca did when she wanted to get away from the world. When she wanted to forget everything around her. And Chloe’s heart sank, because  _she_  was around Beca at that moment. Beca wanted to forget  _her_. Beca wanted to forget this weekend ever happened.

Chloe swallowed loudly, trying to ease the lump in her throat. She’d sat with her older sisters all night. Had cried and cried and cried until no tears had remained. She’d been so close to telling Beca how she felt, but Beca  _didn’t_  feel the same way. Chloe’s heart was broken. She’d fallen asleep on Cate’s large bed, her head on Clara’s lap, her feet on Callie’s lap, and Cate sat on the floor in front of them. All three keeping their eyes on her overnight as though they were her guardian angels.

They’d advised her to talk to Beca once she and Beca were both alone together again. Perhaps once they’d got back to their apartment in Brooklyn? But Chloe couldn’t see how she’d ever find the strength to talk to Beca about all this. She felt sick to the pit of her stomach, and she’d spent so much of yesterday reaching out to hold Beca’s hand that it took her every ounce of self control not to do it now. Beca didn’t  _want_ that. She didn’t  _want_  them to continue their ‘fake relationship’ beyond the weekend they’d had away.

But in truth, Beca herself was going through the same tourment. She also had had to desperately contain her new natural instinct to reach out and hold Chloe’s hand. Beca loved Chloe. And it was because she loved Chloe she had to respect the decision the redhead had made.

They weren’t lovers. They weren’t ever going to be lovers. And it secretly broke their hearts. Returning to their stuffy little apartment was going to be  _really_  difficult after all that happened between them over the past 48hrs..


	22. The Thought

_“What if the thing that’s best for her is you?”_

Beca lay on her back in bed, wide awake, still staring through the dark at the ceiling of the studio apartment she shared with her two best friends. The words that Clara had said to her before she and Chloe had left the hotel were still bouncing around her mind. Beca thought about it over and over again. What had Chloe’s sister  _meant_  by that? There was no way she was best for Chloe. She only made Chloe upset.

Since returning to the apartment earlier that day, Chloe had had to go for  _two_   _runs_  around the neighbourhood to get away from the horribly awkward silence between herself and Beca. Beca, meanwhile, had immediately headed for her side of the bed they’d shared to set up new mixing kit. And Fat Amy - as usual - had been completely oblivious, instead asking them where her tacky gift from the airport was.

Beca let out a heavy sigh and turned her head to look at her best friend. She could see from the light that came from the street lamps outside that Chloe was sleeping on her side, with her back turned to her. Beca swept her tongue across her lips then let out a shaky sigh. A tear sprung from her eyes and ran down her face, pooling slightly on her pillow. This was the worst. She hadn’t ever realised how much attention Chloe had given her before their misunderstanding last night. Nor how much she loved that attention. How much she loved Chloe… Now Beca felt more alone than she’d felt in years. And she hated it.

Chloe laid on her side, her back to the centre of the bed. Her back to Beca. She feared if she slept on her other side she’d risk bursting into tears. She’d not been able to fall asleep since they’d gone to bed properly a couple of hours ago. Her mind going over and over the memories she had of this weekend. Of seeing her sisters. Of seeing Beca in that beautiful black dress for the first time. The feel of Beca’s hand holding hers. The sound of Beca’s low voice mumbling into her ear. How incredible it felt to slow dance with her. How perfect it was to  _kiss_  her. Everything had just felt so right, all until Dana had found out they were pretending. That was when Chloe’s world had come tumbling down.

Chloe heard Beca let out a shaky sigh and she wondered if her best friend was still awake. She wondered if now was probably the best time to talk to Beca about what had happened? But just as Chloe was about to turn around to face Beca, to see through the dark if the woman was awake, she felt some movement that sounded uncannily like Beca turning around in their bed.

Beca let out another sigh as she finally settled onto her side, her back now turned on the centre of the bed, turned on Chloe. She brought a hand up to swiped the tears from her eyes and then let out another shaky sigh.

Both Beca and Chloe hoped this awkwardness wouldn’t last forever. But right now, it felt as though nothing would ever make their situation better. They were doomed to act this awkwardly around each other until one of them eventually drove themselves crazy enough to move out. And both of them dreaded that day.

How could they possibly survive without one another?


	23. The Delay

Beca sat in her studio at work, headphones on ears, tapping away on the desk to try to assess whether the song she was in the process of finishing was actually any good. She was exhausted. Not only had she been struggling to sleep the past few nights since returning from Chloe’s cousin’s wedding, but she’d also been pulling extra long hours at work - getting in earlier than usual and leaving later than usual - mostly so she could avoid the silence that was still deafening between her and Chloe.

Her eyes flickered over to her phone which sat face up near her coffee cup and she paused the mix. Slipping her headphones off one ear, being careful not to catch her earrings, Beca picked up get phone and read the text:

 **CHLOE** :  _PT session tonight. You coming?_

Beca read over the words on the screen from the first text Chloe had sent her in a week. Of course, it was Friday. The night they shared a PT session at the gym. Beca’s stomach knotted as she thought about how relaxed she and Chloe always used to be around each other, particularly at the gym. They used to motivate each other so well. Now though..

The brunette looked up at the clock that hung on the wall nearby. It was only midday. There was still seven hours before this PT session. But she was certain nothing would change in that time between them. So Beca swallowed loudly before composing a reply:

 **BECA** :  _Sorry I cant. Client was delayed this morning so everything’s been pushed back. Will work late._

As she pressed the ‘send’ button, Beca fell back into her chair with a heavy sigh. She’d lied to Chloe. Directly to Chloe. All so she could avoid her. God, this feeling was the  _worst_.

—

Chloe stared at her phone and let out a sad sigh just as Beca’s text came through. She was sat in the small break room at the veterinary clinic she interned at, her packed lunch on her lap. Beca had said no.  _No_. Beca never said no! Sure, the brunette wasn’t overly keen on working out, but with Beca it was usually a case of just  _getting_   _her_   _there_. Once there, Beca tended to enjoy it.

If her heart hadn’t already been aching enough, it ached even more now. She  _had_  hoped that by doing their PT session together they might be able to have a bit of a giggle together like they usually did. Maybe even release some awkward tension. But if Beca wasn’t willing to contribute…

 **CHLOE** :  _Ok. I’ll leave you some dinner in the microwave._

Chloe’s heart skipped a beat when her phone suddenly started ringing and she saw her sister’s name flash up on the screen. She answered it immediately.

“Hey Clara!”

“Hey Coco!” Her sister replied in a cheery tone. From the sounds of things she was outside, and somewhere busy, “Did you get my email?”

Chloe hesitated. She didn’t check her emails very often, “Oh, uh, no?”

“Oh.” came the reply, “I was just calling to say I’m in New York at the moment for a business meeting. Wondered if you fancied meeting for dinner?”

A smile spread across Chloe’s face. She didn’t always have the chance to see her sisters, but to see one of them twice within a week? That was unheard of!

“I’d love to!!”

“Great!” Clara replied, “I’ll book us somewhere and let you know. What time is best for you?”

“Um, whenever!” Chloe said with a grin as she felt the weight lifted from her shoulders slightly, and she felt her phone vibrate - Beca had presumably replied to her text.

—

Beca saw Chloe’s reply come through and let out another sigh.

 **CHLOE** :  _Ok. I’ll leave you some dinner in the microwave._

Chloe was disappointed, Beca could tell, and knowing that made her feel disappointed too. But before she could dwell on it for too long, she felt her phone vibrate with an unknown number. She answered it cautiously and listened hard. She could hear the sound of busy traffic in the background of the caller, then a familiar voice greeting her:

“Hey! Beca?”

A small amused smile spread onto Beca’s face, “Cate?”

“Yeah. How’s it going?”

Beca was a little confused. Why was Chloe’s eldest sister calling her? And  _how_  did she get her number?

“Uh..alright I guess?”

“Only alright?”

Beca swallowed loudly. Yeah, only alright. In fact, even saying things were ‘alright’ was a lie. But she couldn’t exactly confess that it was a huge pile of shit and she desperately wanted to turn back time.

“Things will get better.” she muttered in response, bringing her hand to her face to rub her forehead soothingly.

“You And Coco still not talking?”

Beca hesitated, her hand dropping from her face, and she furrowed her brow, “How d’you know that?”

“She’s my little sister, Beca.” Cate said in a tone that sounded as though she had her eyebrows raised, “We talk every day.”

Beca began running her thumb along the ring on her index finger nervously. A small part of her was jealous. She missed talking to Chloe every day - and she shared a  _bed_  with the woman!

“She still angry with me?” Beca asked in a quiet tone and she heard Cate let out a sigh.

“Beca, she was never angry with you. She…” and the eldest Beale sister paused. Beca found herself sitting up, listening hard for what Cate might say next. “Did you see my email?”

Beca furrowed her brow. Again, she had no idea how Cate had found her email address, just as she had no idea how Cate had found her phone number, “Uh, no. I’ve not checked my emails in the last couple of hours.”

“Ah. Okay, well I’ve got to go into a meeting, but I’m actually in New York at the moment. Did you want to meet up for dinner or something?” Cate suggested, and Beca glanced over at the clock in her studio out of habit.

“Uh, yeah…yeah sure. Um…I can probably do six o’clock?”

“Great. I’ll book somewhere and text you the location?”

“Yeah. O-Okay.” Beca agreed, then said goodbye. As she ended the call she texted her estranged best friend:

 **BECA** :  _Don’t worry about dinner. I’ll be eating at work._

then sat back in her seat again with a sigh. What a strange turn of events.

Beca chewed on her bottom lip, staring down at her phone. She’d had to change the photo on her lock screen. It had originally been a photo of the top of a latté - one that had been Chloe’s biggest success a couple of months ago, her first attempt at ‘Latté art’ with the new coffee machine Beca had bought for the apartment. But seeing that photo after last weekend only served as a painful reminder of Chloe when all Beca wanted to do was forget about her when she wasn’t at home.

Then she remembered Cate’s question, and Beca sat forward in her seat, reaching out to her MacBook and pulling her emails up. Sure enough, there was an email from Cate, with the subject title:

**FW: Chloe & Beca**

Beca took a deep breath and double clicked on the email..


	24. The Email

Beca’s eyebrows furrowed as she peered at the email before her. The first part was written by Cate:

Beca, I know you said last weekend was all pretend and that you weren’t in love with Chloe. I know you weren’t able to see what we saw last weekend when you and Chloe were together. But I hope that this email will show you why we honestly believed that you were (and still are) as in love with Chloe as she is with you.

Beca froze, her breath hitching in her throat as she read the final part of Cate’s sentence. Chloe was  _in love_   _with_   _her_?? But…she  _couldn’t_  be. Chloe had barely spoken to her since returning to Brooklyn. They’d drifted further and further apart over the past several days. But why would Cate have said that Chloe was in love with Beca if it wasn’t true?

Beca scrolled down the page and began reading the email that Cate had forwarded to her. She noticed that the email had actually been sent to Cate, Clara, and Callie by none other than  _Dana_!

> Hi Ladies,
> 
> Sorry again about my behaviour last weekend. You know how much of a terrible drunk I am!
> 
> I haven’t got Chloe or Beca’s email addresses so I thought I’d send this to you instead and maybe you could forward it to them? Our photographer sent a sneak peek of all our photos from the wedding and one of them in particular caught my attention…

Beca felt her stomach flip, her heart beginning to race as her eyes fell upon the photo that Dana had attached in the email. It was from the afternoon of the wedding. In particular it was the photo that the photographer’s assistant had taken of Beca and Chloe together. The surprise one. The one when they hadn’t been looking at the camera, they’d been looking at  _each other_. Beca swallowed loudly as she peered closer at it.

There it was. As clear as day. Photo evidence of the very thing that Cate had been trying to explain to Beca just before Dana had overheard the truth. Well..what Beca had tried to  _insist_  was the truth..even if deep down she hadn’t believed it herself.

Beca felt her body go a little numb as her eyes focussed on the soft expression on Chloe’s face in the photo while she’d been looking at her. Then Beca’s eyes trailed over to the soft expression on her own face in the photo. She remembered how she’d felt in that moment. She’d felt a huge force of happiness looking into those beautiful bright blue eyes - stronger than any happiness she’d ever felt before. She’d felt… _complete_.

> I know Beca said they weren’t dating but if this photo is anything to go by I’d say they’re missing out on a huge opportunity. I want Chloe to be happy. I want her to be with someone who looks at her the way Beca does in this photo. I think Chloe and Beca could really have something great.

Beca cleared her throat, then rose her eyebrows with a huge sigh. What a change in personality for Dana! Perhaps the woman  _had_  been drunk for most of her wedding?

The brunette quickly scrolled back up to look at the photo again. In the photo she had her arm around Chloe’s waist. Naturally. Protectively. Affectionately. And Chloe had her hand on Beca’s hip, cupping it as though their bodies fitted perfectly together. Because their bodies  _did_ fit perfectly together. And that was when Beca finally conceded that yes, it must’ve looked  _very_  obvious to most of Chloe’s family, immediate and extended, that she was in love with her best friend.

Beca felt her heart skip a beat, when she scrolled back down to read the final few sentences sent by Dana.

> I hope it’s not too late. I know Chloe used to talk about a ‘Beca’ all the time in college. Now I can see why. They really do go well together. Here’s hoping they can sort it out and get together properly.

Beca swept her tongue across her lips then let out a breath she hadn’t realised she’d been holding. Chloe used to talk about her? And according to Cate, Chloe was  _in love with her_?

The brunette scrolled back down the page to find the photo again and sighed, sitting back in her chair. Her eyes remained on the image of herself and Chloe, arms around each other, looking completely and madly in love with one another. They’d been alone. They’d not been aware of any photographer. And that was how Beca knew it must’ve been real.

Beca flipped her phone gently between her fingers. She couldn’t call Cate now to find out what she’d meant by Chloe being in love with her. She’d have to wait until she saw Chloe’s eldest sister later today for dinner. From the sounds of things, Cate had all the answers…


	25. The Confession

Chloe arrived outside the beautiful slight building in Downtown New York, looking up at it with a furrowed brow. This was definitely the address Clara had given her. But from the outside, she would’ve never have guessed it was a  _restaurant_.

She looked down at her phone screen. 6:03pm. Three minutes late. But this was her sister she was meeting. Chloe knew Clara wouldn’t mind.

The redhead took a deep breath and began ascending the few short steps up to the front door. She’d ended up looking at that email Clara had sent her. Had ended up reading through the long email from Dana and looking at the attached photo. It was that photo that got Chloe the most curious. Because Beca had looked as though she was as in love with her as she had looked with Beca. And it had got Chloe… _hopeful_.

The redhead took a deep breath, but just as she brought her hand up to knock on the door, it was opened by someone who looked very much like a waitress. Just as the door opened she smelt a beautiful aroma of food, and could see from the interior behind the woman that it was, in fact, and eaterie. And a cosy one at that. Fairly dark - but cosy.

“Hi, um…reservation for Beale?” Chloe asked in an optimistic tone, and the waitress smiled brightly.

“Yes, right this way!”

And Chloe stepped inside the building, the heavy door closing behind her. She slowly followed the woman through into a large room before stopping just inside the doorway. There were several lamps dotted around the place, a few dining tables all laid out for a dinner service, and a couple of couches by a roaring open fire - perfect for this chilly winter day. But nobody else. Not even Clara!

A curious smile spread across the redhead’s face and she slowly wandered a little further into the room, as the waitress motioned to the couch by the fire.

“Your dinner partner has called ahead to apologise. She’s running a bit late.”

But Chloe let out a light chuckle, still fascinated by the room she was stood in. There would’ve been no way she’d have ever imagined that this place was here. Never! Her eyes looked to the walls that boasted large old wooden bookshelves filled with books - old and new - and several antiques lined along the top of the the fireplace.

“No problem. I can wait.”

And Chloe sat down on the couch with a relaxed sigh, slipping her winter coat from her body, letting the waitress take it from her to hang up by the door.

—

Beca walked as fast as her feet could carry her. She’d been counting down the minutes since Cate had sent her a text a couple of hours ago telling her the location of where they’d meet for dinner. She had to see her. She had to find out what she’d meant when she’d written in that email about Chloe being in love with her.

The brunette came to an abrupt stop, then stepped backwards a few paces, turning to face a very normal looking building indeed. Her brow furrowed as she looked at the big door. It looked more like someone’s  _house_  than an eaterie. Had Cate given her the right address?

But just as she began looking up the details again, the front door opened and a waitress appeared to be stood at the door with a big beaming smile. So Beca, assuming this was absolutely the type of place a  _Beale_ would book for dinner, began making her way up the stone steps. She reached the door and said in a quiet tone, “Sorry I’m late…uh…” but the waitress continued to smile.

“Not a problem at all. Reservation for Beale I assume?”

“Uh…” Beca began, looking around the dimly lit lobby, “…yeah.”

“Right this way. She’s already here.”

Beca let the heavy door close behind her and she followed the waitress while gently loosening the scarf that was around her neck. She could feel the warmth from the room she was being led into and a calm smile spread on her face. She hated the cold.

Her eyebrows rose when she finally stepped into the ‘dining’ room. There were some laid tables and chairs, several lampshades to bring some light into the dark room, large book cases that boasted a massive array of books, and a huge fireplace with a roaring fire within it. And by that fire were two couches, one of which appeared to have Cate sat on it.

Except…as Beca wandered further into the room she realised she recognised the redhead sat with her back to her far better than she knew Cate. And her heart jumped into her throat when she saw  _Chloe_ turn on the couch, her big beaming smile dropping in shock.

“B-Beca??” Chloe managed to force out in a confused tone, “What are you  _doing_  here?”

“I’m meeting your sister. What are  _you_  doing here?”

“I’m meeting my sister too!”

The two women fell silent and Chloe got to her feet, picking at her fingernails nervously. But Beca and Chloe both jumped when they heard someone clear their throat.

They turned and saw that there, stood on the other side of the room, in a different doorway, was Cate, Clara, and Callie. All three looked at Beca and Chloe with mischievous grins on their faces, and both Beca and Chloe rolled their eyes in unison.

“Wha-?” Chloe began, her mouth dropping open as all three of her older sisters folded their arms, their expressions dropping to serious tones.

“We’re staging an intervention.” Clara said firmly, her other two sisters humming in agreement.

“You’ve both been sent the email and you’ve both read it.” Callie confirmed.

“You’ve both seen what we saw last weekend. What  _everyone_  saw.” Cate said with a nod.

“Now you guys need to sit down and tell each other  _properly_  how you feel about each other.” Clara added.

“And we’ll give you both a hint…” Callie said.

“ _You’re both crazy in love with each other._ ” The three eldest Beale sisters said in unison - as though they’d rehearsed it (which they had). Beca and Chloe both flushed bright red, entirely embarrassed that not only were they being called out but that their deepest secret was a mutual secret. A secret no more.

Beca swallowed loudly, turning to Chloe, feeling a little flustered when her best friend turned to look back at her nervously.

“Beca?” Chloe asked in a quiet voice, and the tone had Beca’s heart racing, “Is it true?”

The room fell silent and an embarrassed smile slowly spread across Beca’s face. God, she wasn’t one for  _soft_  confrontation. But this situation was feeling  _very_  soft at the moment.

“Uh…yeah. Yeah I’m…” and the brunette let out a heavy sigh of defeat, her walls tumbling down, not tearing her eyes from Chloe while she motioned to the three older redheads stood in the doorway across the room, “…they’re right, Chlo.”

And a small smile spread across Chloe’s face when Beca finished in a soft, vulnerable, whisper, “I’m  _crazy_  about you.”

Chloe was stunned. She could barely breathe. She didn’t  _want_  to breathe, for fear of missing out on anything else that Beca might say. But the brunette remained quiet, and Chloe saw the way Beca’s smile slowly dropped. Chloe began to panic. Oh God, she’s stayed quiet for too long. Beca was worrying. And Chloe knew that when Beca worried, she got anxious. And when she got anxious, she built her walls up and hid herself away. And when she hid herself away? Chloe struggled to cope.

“I’m crazy about you too!” Chloe blurted then paused, realising just how aggressive she may have sounded, such was the result of her initial panic. “I…” she said in a little bit of a gentler tone before letting out a light sigh to try to calm her nerves, “I’ve been in love with you for a long time.”

A smile grew on Beca’s face again, her eyes locked with Chloe’s, and Chloe saw the way the flames from the fire reflect in Beca’s eyes, making it appear as though they were dancing. It felt like a huge weight had been lifted from Chloe’s shoulders to finally tell Beca how she felt. And it was actually like a huge weight had been lifted from Cate, Clara and Callie’s shoulders too. They’d been keeping their little sister’s secret for years, and it had been killing them to see their little Coco falling deeper and deeper in love with her best friend while Beca remained completely oblivious. But no more. Beca and Chloe were finally on the same page.

“So we’re gonna leave you two alone.” Cate said in an affectionate tone, drawing Beca and Chloe’s attention from one another while Clara and Callie nodded. “Grab a seat together on that couch. Order yourselves some drinks. Say what you both have to say - even grab some dinner if you like - and Coco, we’ll see you in a few weeks for Christmas.”

But Beca and Chloe both furrowed their brows.

“Where are you going?” Chloe asked in confusion, having still assumed she’d be having dinner with her sister - well,  _sisters_  now they were all here.

“Back home.” Callie said with a shrug and Cate and Clara both nodded in agreement.

“Yeah we only came up here to get you two together.” Clara added with a grin. But Beca and Chloe weren’t happy with that answer. In their minds, yes they had some talking to do, but they could do that on their way home. Chloe’s sisters would only be here for so long. They needed to make the most of it.

“Oh come on you guys, you have to at least stay for a drink!” Beca insisted, and this time it was Chloe who nodded in agreement, slowly wandering towards the brunette.

“To let us say thank you?” Chloe added, and a soft smile spread on both Beca and Chloe’s faces when Chloe gently took Beca’s hand and laced their fingers together. Beca let out a happy calm sigh as she felt Chloe’s hand warming hers. That was Chloe all over. Forever warming Beca’s heart.

The three older Beale sisters smiled at the contact between Chloe and Beca, then nodded.

“Alright.” Cate agreed, “We’ll hang around a bit longer.”

The women all smiled at one another, thrilled that Beca and Chloe had finally come to their senses. But just as Cate, Clara, and Callie were about to head further into the room, Beca brought her free hand up cautiously.

“Um…would you guys just…mind giving me and Chloe a minute alone? Just quickly.” she promised, and the three redheads nodded, their final sight of their youngest sister being the smile on her face when Beca turned to look at her completely. As though all her dreams had come true in this one moment.

Cate, Clara, and Callie stepped out of the room and closed the door behind them. They grinned at one another. Their plan had worked.

They’d known several months ago that if they banded together to trick their father into making a joke in front of the whole family about Beca and Chloe being together, that Dana would end up offering Chloe a ‘plus one’ to the wedding. They knew that with the right encouragement on their behalf, Chloe would end up asking Beca to be said ‘plus one’. And the three sisters truly believed that Beca  _did_  hold some sort of romantic flame for Chloe. And that she would of course agree. Once at that wedding they knew Beca and Chloe would fall hard for each other - such was the prerogative of a fake dating pact.

Because Cate, Clara, and Callie knew Beca would do  _anything_  for their little sister. And as it turned out, they’d been right.


	26. The Couch

Chloe watched as her sisters crept backwards with soft smiles and closed the door behind them. Her heart was racing, hardly able to believe what they’d done for her. Yes, they’d meddled. But all in the right ways. All for the right reason.

Beca said herself that she was crazy about her.  _Her_! Chloe Beale! Beca  _finally_  felt the same way about her. And that knowledge was something Chloe was still struggling to believe.

She looked to her best friend as Beca turned to her, still with her scarf hung loosely around her neck and her winter jacket zipped up. But there was this smile on Beca’s face that she’d missed. A smile that Beca had given her last weekend. As though Beca was in some sort of beautiful trance.

Chloe watched as Beca took a sharp intake of breath, opening her mouth as if to say something, then hesitated nervously. She felt her best friend let go of her hand and turn completely to face her, so Chloe did the same.

“Can…” Beca asked quietly, holding her index finger up between them as if asking Chloe to not interrupt her thought process, “…can I just…”

But before Chloe heard anything more of Beca’s sentence, her eyes snapped shut as her best friend surged the short distance towards her, cupping Chloe’s cheek while wrapping an arm around her waist, and the brunette quickly threw her lips onto Chloe’s. They both inhaled deeply through their noses, relishing how soft one anothers lips were, breaking the kiss everso slightly to change the angle of the next kiss which was quickly resumed, this time far firmer.

Chloe’s hands had grabbed large chunks of Beca’s scarf, tugging the petite woman tight against her. The second proper kiss the two women had ever shared was one laced with hope and promise, and oozing love and desire. The knowledge that they were both in fact very much in love with each other making the kiss all the more meaningful than the one they’d shared the previous weekend.

The kiss came to a natural end, the two women letting out heavy sighs of relief as their lips parted slightly and their noses delicately traced over one another’s noses. Their eyes fluttered open slightly and small smiles spread across their faces, a light chuckle falling from Beca’s mouth.

“ _I’ve wanted to do that all week_.” Beca whispered affectionately, her thumb tracing over Chloe’s cheek and Chloe let out a small chuckle of her own.

“ _Me too_.” Chloe whispered back, ducking her lips a little closer to Beca’s again so they traced across the skin enticingly. But neither woman succumbed just yet, enjoying the way their hearts raced in excitement, and the way their bodies felt numb with anticipation. Happier than they’d ever felt before.

“I uh…” Beca began, drawing her face back a little more to look down at their bodies nervously, and Chloe watched the woman curiously, loving how vulnerable Beca looked. Loving that Beca felt comfortable enough with her to be this vulnerable. The brunette brought her hand from Chloe’s cheek, taking a small lock of her hair instead, twirling it gently between her fingers as though it were some sort of comfort, “…I’m sorry I upset you last weekend.”

This time it was Chloe’s turn to reach up and cup Beca’s cheek, a kind smile on her face. Beca squeezed her eyes shut, letting out a shaky sigh.

“I-I was just panicking because your sister kept telling me that I was in love with you a-and I was…I  _am!”_ Beca’s eyes opened, her face screwing up slightly, _“_ But I thought  _you_  weren’t in love with me, so I kept telling Cate that we weren’t in love or dating and then  _Dana_  overheard and…” Beca paused to sigh again while she tried to explain what had happened, but Chloe skimmed her fingers from Beca’s neck where she was cupping her cheek, along her jawline, pausing at her chin.

Beca allowed her face to be tilted up and she felt a wave of calm spread across her body as her eyes locked with Chloe’s once again. Chloe, the girl who had knocked down all her walls. The girl who accepted Beca unconditionally, even when she sometimes struggled to accept herself. Beca had never felt as in love as she did right now, nor had she ever felt as safe.

“I’m sorry I overreacted.” Chloe said in a soft voice, her kind smile growing when she saw a soft smile slowly begin to appear on Beca’s face again. It was strange to see tears shining in the brunette’s eyes. But something that Chloe definitely felt privileged to be exposed to.

“Shall we promise to never keep stuff a secret from each other again?” Beca mumbled, her face slowly approaching Chloe’s again. Chloe’s hand had fallen from Beca’s face, now stuffed in Beca’s coat pocket, and she used this position as leverage to tug Beca close to her again.

“ _Definitely_.” Chloe whispered in reply, her nose brushing over the tip of Beca’s once again, their eyes drifting down to one another’s lips. They could feel the other’s breath wash over their face, their breathing short and fast, their hearts racing.

But before either of them shared another kiss, Chloe began gently tugging Beca to the couch, her hand tugging Beca’s jacket pocket and her other hand tugging Beca’s scarf. And a mischievous smile spread on Chloe’s face as she watched Beca bite her bottom lip.

They both collapsed onto the couch with light sighs, sat close, side-by-side. Chloe drew her face closer to Beca’s, nudging into the nook between Beca’s nostril and cheek, and gently unwinding the scarf from around her best friend’s neck. Beca meanwhile, was unzipping her winter jacket, tugging it from around her petite body, and when the two items of clothing were finally removed, they both let out happy sighs.

“ _We should probably let your sisters back in soon._ ” Beca whispered with a chuckle, and Chloe hummed gently in agreement.

“One more minute.” Chloe mumbled against Beca’s lips, her left hand on the inside of Beca’s thigh, her right hand drawing little circles on the small of Beca’s back. Beca’s hands slipped up to the sides of Chloe’s neck, her thumbs tracing the back of her best friend’s jawline.

And with one final deep breath, the two women closed their eyes and shared another deep kiss…


	27. The Epilogue

“Doo ‘ou t’ink we should announ’ shit?” Chloe asked conversationally, her toothbrush hanging out of her mouth as she inspected her reflection in the large mirror before her.

“Huh?” came a voice from the bedroom connected to the small ensuite Chloe was stood in, and the redhead looked up to see her girlfriend appear in the doorway. Chloe still found herself having to catch her breath whenever she saw Beca dressed up in posh clothes, with flawless make-up and her long brown hair styled beautifully.

Chloe popped her toothbrush out of her mouth, holding her hair back with her free hand to spit out the toothpaste in the sink that had gathered in her mouth, “I said, do you think we should announce it? Like on social media. Before dinner? Then people won’t start guessing if we’re together based on the  _heap_  of photos my family will undoubtedly take of us tonight…”

Beca stood, leant against the doorway with her arms folded, a soft smile on her face. Six weeks on from officially getting together and she was still completely mesmerised by Chloe and all that she was. The redhead was still stood in her matching underwear, having completed her makeup routine, her dress still hung up on the back of the ensuite door. Beca was used to being ready long before her girlfriend. It had always been the way, even before they’d begun this relationship.

“Yeah, if you wanted to?” Beca said with a shrug, always going to the beat of Chloe’s drum when it came to this romantic adventure they’d embarked on.

“I think it’d be good.” Chloe replied, pausing to swill her mouth with water before spitting. Beca meanwhile, made her way further into the small ensuite, and as Chloe stood up straight, a broad smile spread across her face while she felt her girlfriend stand behind her and smooth her cool hands around her bare waist.

The two girlfriends looked at their reflection in the mirror, Beca resting her chin on Chloe’s shoulder comfortably now she had some heels on. Chloe let out a light sigh, her bottom lip protruding for a moment, and her hands landed lightly over Beca’s.

“I’m getting fat…” Chloe confessed in a quiet vulnerable tone, but a tiny smile began growing on her face when she saw her girlfriend furrow her brow.

“You’re definitely  _not_  getting fat, babe.” Beca protested, “And even if you were - which you’re not - it wouldn’t bother me!”

Chloe let out a light sigh, “Fine, I’ve put on weight then.”

“So what if you have? It’s  _the_   _Holidays_! Everyone puts on a bit of weight over Christmas.” Beca said before placing a kiss on her girlfriend’s shoulder.

“You don’t seem to..” Chloe mumbled vulnerably but Beca simply placed another kiss on her shoulder, holding her a bit tighter.

“I’m a freak of nature.” the brunette said seriously, “I’d kill to have curves like yours.”

A shy smile swept onto Chloe’s face and the redhead rolled her eyes, but Beca wasn’t going to back down, “I mean it! I wouldn’t care if you became twice or even three times the size you are now. I  _love_   _you_. And I’m gonna love you for the rest of our lives.”

“You smoothie.” Chloe mumbled, her smile growing.

“Well you  _are_  stood in front of me in your underwear with your cute butt hanging out.” Beca said with a deadpan tone and expression, “What do you expect?”

And Chloe let out a laugh, turning in her girlfriend’s arms while Beca grinned at her. Miraculously they’d somehow managed to keep their romance a complete secret from their roommate. Fat Amy had been totally oblivious to the fact that Beca and Chloe often returned home together in the evening (because they’d been out on a date), or the fact that they fell asleep snuggled in each other’s arms, and even  _woke up_ snuggled in each other’s arms. They kissed in the apartment when Amy wasn’t looking. They shared longing and/or mischievous looks when Amy wasn’t looking. It had all been a lot of fun, but they were both getting a little tired of sneaking around.

“Will you do the post before we go down to see your family?” Beca asked, slightly distracted by the way Chloe’s mouth was now hovering near hers, and she heard a light “uhuh” leave the back of Chloe’s throat. The Beale’s - en mass - had essentially booked an entire hotel in South Carolina for the Christmas Holidays. And one of the rooms was Beca and Chloe’s suites. Most of Chloe’s extended family were still unaware that Beca and Chloe had actually been pretending to date at Dana’s wedding, and as such many were still unaware that Beca and Chloe had had a bit of a falling out after Dana discovered they‘d been fake dating for the sake of the wedding. Tonight, however, was the first time Beca and Chloe were seeing Chloe’s father’s side of the family since the wedding. And tonight it was also the first time they were seeing them since officially becoming a proper couple six weeks ago.

Beca and Chloe shared a deep kiss, smiles on their faces, trying to not smudge their makeup, still in that wonderful honeymoon period where kissing felt so fresh and new. Then Chloe let out a squeak as Beca broke the kiss and squeezed her ass.

“Now get that cute butt into that dress so we can go downstairs, Beale. Or we’ll be late.” Beca ordered and wandered out of the bathroom, letting out a chuckle. She slipped her heels off again, and clambered up onto the large bed, leaning back against the headboard and crossing her legs while she flipped through her phone.

Suddenly an Instagram notification popped up at the top of her screen:

> **c.a.beale1990**  tagged you in a photo

“Chloeeeee…” Beca began in a warming tone as she pressed the notification to see the photo, “…I thought you were getting dressed?

She smiled as she heard a sweet giggle come from the bathroom, her girlfriend replying with a light, “I know I know, I am.” It was a common conversation between them whenever they were due to be somewhere by a particular time.

Beca’s heart skipped a beat when her eyes fell upon Chloe’s most recent photo. In fact..it seemed to be a few photos one after the other in the same post.

The first photo was of Beca and Chloe during their Senior year at Barden. When they were co-captains, drunk at their last Hoodnight Party. Both of them with their arms around each other, drunk-Beca trying to lick drunk-Chloe’s cheek while the redhead beamed.

Swiping left, the second photo was from Dana’s wedding. The one where Beca and Chloe had been looking naturally and lovingly into one another’s eyes. The photo that had helped them see just how much they meant to the other.

The third was another photo of the two of them taken at Dana’s wedding. This time it was of the two of them slow-dancing to the first dance song, just before they’d started making out. Just before their very first kiss.

The forth photo was a selfie Chloe had taken a few days ago, the two of them curled up under the bedcovers in their Brooklyn apartment. Beca was placing a kiss on Chloe’s cheek, a soft smile on her face while Chloe looked up at the camera serenely.

And the fifth and final photo had been taken shortly after the previous. The two of them curled up under the bedcovers, both with their arms around each other (save for Chloe’s arm that was busy holding the phone to take the picture), both looking at one another with calm happy expressions, the tips of their noses touching. As though nobody and nothing in the world existed or mattered but each other.

Beca’s eyes looked down the screen at the caption below, and a smile grew on her face:

> **c.a.beale1990**  Words cannot describe how I feel about this amazing human being ❤ _@ donttouchmybeats_  - thanks for being my partner in crime since our college years. Thanks for loving me even on days when I struggle to love myself. Thanks for being my plus one to events and in life. And thanks for an amazingly romantic six weeks together ❤ here’s to the rest of our lives ❤ I love you xx  **#soulmates #besties #comingout #areyoureallysurprised** **?  #happyholidays #christmaswish #chloeandbeca #bloe #bechloe? #chlobeca? #sevenyearsstrong #love #girlfriends #partners #complete #sheletsmetouchherbeats #special #loved #toomanyhashtags? #imgonnamarryheroneday**

Beca grinned, looking up from her phone to see her girlfriend hovering in the doorway, watching for her reaction, still very much only in her underwear.

“Too much?” Chloe asked in a quiet voice that didn’t match the grin on her face.

“Definitely not.” Beca replied, looking back down at the post, getting ready to reblog it while letting out a chuckle, “The Bellas are gonna freak!”

Chloe plucked her dress from the hanger on the back of the door and slipped into it, pulling her long red hair to the side, ready to zip the outfit up. She smiled when she noticed a notification pop up on her phone screen:

> **donttouchmybeats**  reposted your photo

Chloe reached for her phone and opened up Instagram. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw that Beca had reposted the very collection of photos she just had, instead adding the caption:

> **donttouchmybeats**  **Rated ‘S’ for ‘Soppy’** When you find the thing you hadn’t been looking for, and it’d been in front of you the whole time ❤ In the words of _ @b_ _runomars_  “Her eyes her eyes make the stars look like they’re not shining. Her hair her hair falls perfectly without her trying. She’s so beautiful and I tell her everyday.”  _@c.a.beale1990_  - thanks for loving a loser like me. I promise to love you in return forever xx ** #soppypost #foolsinlove #amyyoullbehappytoseeweretogether #romantically #haroldtheyrelesbians #bloe #bechloe #chloe #ifuckingloveher #thisiswhathappinessis #isittoosoontopropose?** A special thanks to  _@catherinebeale-carrow123  @calliecominatcha_ and  _@clara-thecooltwin_  for setting us up together ❤  **#youguysrock**

“Too much?” Chloe heard her girlfriend ask, the woman having wandered into the bathroom to help her get ready, and a smile spread on Chloe’s face as she looked up into the large mirror just as Beca zipped her dress up.

“Definitely not.”


End file.
